Star-Crossed Lovers
by gossipplleekswiftiegirl
Summary: Rachel Berry FINALLY finds love with Finn Hudson. Everything's all good now, right? Or are they, really?
1. Prologue

**Star-Crossed Lovers**

**Summary: Rachel Berry is an ordinary girl, and is a high school junior at McKinley High School in Lima, Ohio. Finn Hudson is America's sweetheart and a screen sensation. Finn comes to Lima to research for a role, posing as a transfer student at McKinley and Rachel is tasked to be his student guide assistant or whatever you wanna call it. But that's not all. She is also tasked to keep his true identity a secret. And last but not the least, Finn made a deal with her that she MUST NOT FALL IN LOVE with him. Two questions: what will happen when Finn's real identity is revealed to all of McKinley High and what will happen when Rachel finds herself falling for him?**

**A/N: This is co-written with my best friend, Yvonne. I wrote this first chapter, though. Hope you guys enjoy!**

_**Rachel's POV**_

If you'd have told me that Finn Hudson, yes, THE famous Finn Hudson would change my life someday, and in a huge way at that, I probably would have laughed at you and said, "Yeah, right. That's totally true… and hilarious."

He changed my life in a massive way and changed everything I ever knew. He's my first love and first loves are forever. Right?

Whoa, whoa, whoa. Oops. I'm totally getting ahold of myself and you probably don't know what I'm rambling on about. Thought so. Don't fret, because I'm going to tell you everything and I promise to not leave anything out.

You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll sorta, maybe, kinda fall in love with the story I'm about to tell you.

**A/N: Introductory chapter, tell me what you think so far…**


	2. My name is Rachel Berry

**One**

**A/N: Hey guys. I'm Yvonne, I'm Rein's best friend and as you may know, I co-wrote this fanfic with her. I wrote this chapter; I hope you all like my first entry! :)**

_**Rachel's POV**_

My name is Rachel Berry. I'm seventeen and I'm a junior at McKinley High School in a small town called Lima, Ohio. I've lived in Lima all my life with my mom Shelby, my brother Noah, my sister Marley, and my two best friends in the whole world; there's Santana Lopez, my Latina friend and Brittany S. Pierce, my favorite blonde ever. Don't ask why I didn't include my father's name up there coz truthfully, I don't want to talk about him. Talking about him makes me sad. God, I need a glass of water.

Anyways, we'll get back to all of that later. Now where were we? Ah, right. Me. Let's talk about me.

I'm Jewish, I'm petite, I'm kind of an annoying diva, and I aspire to be on Broadway someday. My idols are Barbra Streisand, Celine Dion, and Patti LuPone. I'm good at keeping secrets and I'm also good at solving problems. All my friends come to me for advices regarding life, friendships, and relationships—even though I've never had a boyfriend. I'm what you call a no-boyfriend-since-birth type of girl.

I'm a member of the school's glee club called New Directions. I only joined because San and Britt joined too. We all love to sing. The three of us are also in the Cheerios—the school's cheerleading group. Coach Sue—terror coach Sue Sylvester—is our mentor and has led us to statewide Sectional, Regional, and National championships and we always emerge victorious as champions.

Santana, Brittany, and I have been BFFs since we were five years old; we first met at Lima Presbyterian in kindergarten and we all kind of clicked. The rest is history.

**A/N: Review if you want me to continue!**


	3. Task

**Two**

_**Rachel's POV**_

San, Britt, and I were in the Spanish room one morning waiting for our teacher, Mr. William Schuester to arrive—he is fondly called Mr. Schue here at McKinley; he's also our glee club director and he's my favorite teacher—when I heard this voice over the speaker:

"Miss Rachel Berry, please come to the principal's office. Immediately." I put my head in my hands, was I in trouble for something I didn't do or what?

I then put my hands in my lap and look up to see San and Britt staring at me half sympathetically and half curiously. San whispered in my ear, "What did you do, Rach?"

I wish I knew the answer to that question, but I didn't so I just shrugged.

We were silent for a few moments until I broke the spell. "I'm going there now to find out. See you gals later." I stood up and with a wave, I went out of the room before B could get a word in.

'Gosh, what kind of trouble am I in this time?' I thought as I leisurely walked down the hallways. 'It couldn't be the slushies since Figgins constituted a slushie ban here at school and we Cheerios have all stopped tormenting people… so what could I have done?'

My question was answered when I got to the office of Principal Figgins. I scanned the room and saw that Mr. Schue and Ms. Emma Pillsbury—our guidance counselor—were there as well. Now this was serious. What the hell is going on?

"What the hell is going on? Am I in trouble or something?" I blurt out before I could stop myself.

"No you're not in any sort of trouble, Miss Berry. Please, have a seat." Figgins said and I took a seat on the couch, joining Ms. P and Mr. Schue. I was confused to say the least.

I let out a nervous laugh. "What am I doing here then?"

Ms. Pillsbury piped up. "Rachel, since you're so good at keeping secrets and solving problems, we thought you were perfect for the job."

What the hell? This keeps getting weirder and weirder. What job is she talking about?

"O-kay…" I say and trail off.

It was Mr. Schue who spoke next. "Rachel, are you familiar with Finn Hudson?"

Well, duh. Of course I am. Everyone who's anyone here at McKinley High is familiar with him. I nodded. "Finn Hudson, star of Gideon the Powerful and the movie remake of Romeo and Juliet? Eighteen year-old celebrity, screen sensation Finn Hudson?" I saw them all nod.

"I'm familiar with him. Go on, I'm listening."

Ms. P answered me. "Well, he's coming here to Lima, here at McKinley to research for a role. But he'll be coming in as a transfer student under the name of Finley Hodgeson. He'll be here for two weeks."

I was still confused as to what my part here is exactly. "And? What exactly is my role in all of this?" What was up with the suspense and everything?

Figgins answered me this time. "Well, we'd like you to be his student assistant. You know, tour him around the school, help him settle in just fine and everything. But…" He trailed off.

"But what?" I asked, getting irritated with them and their suspense.

Mr. Schue continued what Mr. Figgins was supposed to say. "…but not only that, Rachel. You also have to keep his identity a secret to refrain from causing chaos and all."

I nodded. I guess I could do all of that.

"What do you think, Ms. Berry? Think you're up for it?" Figgins asked me.

I didn't think twice so I just said, "Sure. I'm in."

They all smiled at me and I smiled back. Their smiles lit up the room, it was kinda blinding me.

"Great! He'll be here Monday. Thank you, Miss Berry. I knew we could count on you," Principal Figgins said and I just went, "No problem."

Before I knew it, well, they let me go and Mr. Schue said he'll be at the Spanish room in ten. I walked leisurely again, thinking about everything that just happened.

It all seemed pretty easy to me.

Little did I know, it wasn't easy and I should just have turned the offer down. But I couldn't refuse and it was too late to turn back now, I already agreed.

Oh Rachel, what have you just gotten yourself into?

**A/N: Hey guys, it's Yvonne again. This was the longest chapter I've done yet, and I'm sure Rein would be proud of me. More to come, stay tuned! Tell me what you think.**


	4. Problem Solved

**Three**

**A/N: This chapter is written by Rein :)**

My best friends are total fangirls of Finn Hudson. Well, Santana for the most part. Brittany is just crushing on him. Santana, however, imagines them someday ending up together, getting married, having kids and all that.

My sister Marley is a huge fan of Finn, too. She has huge posters of him tacked on her wall. I guess Santana has a competition on that one.

I on the other hand, am not really a fan.

Okay, sure. I've watched Romeo and Juliet with San and Britt a couple of times already, but I prefer watching Broadway movies like Barbra's Funny Girl to… Finn's films and shows.

Now I don't really know how to feel about him coming here. I guess it was kind of a shock, but I quickly got over it.

I was surfing the web for anything Finn Hudson related when I heard my phone ringing. I quickly scanned the caller ID and saw that it was Santana. What could she want?

"Hey, San." I answered.

"_Rachel, hi._" She says on the other end of the line.

"What's up?" I ask as casually as I could manage.

"_You never told me and Britt what was up at the office with you earlier at school today. What, are you like keeping secrets from us now? What's up, chica?_" She asks.

I bit my lip, thankful that she couldn't see me.

"Oh it's nothing, San. I'm not in trouble of any sort."

"_O-kay… then what's up?_"

"Well, we have a new transfer student that's coming in Monday and Figgins wanted me to be his student assistant and help him settle in just fine at the school and— well, that's that." I said, as subtly as I possibly could. I didn't give anything away, thank God.

"_Oh. So it's all good, then?_"

"Yup, all good."

"_Great! Now that that's dunzo, I have to tell you about something!_" She squealed.

I rolled my eyes. "Let me guess. Gossip about Finn Hudson?"

Her squeal on the other end proved me to be correct.

"_Apparently, he just broke up with his Romeo and Juliet co-star girlfriend, Quinn Fabray, because according to sources she's a slut and sleeps around with random guys. That's not all though. She ended up married to this random crazed fanboy she met at an mall tour/autograph signing session she did in LA. Good for her. Do you know what this means? Finn's single and I'm also single, now we can mingle!_"

I rolled my eyes and chuckled at Santana's outburst.

"Yeah, good for ya, San. But now I gotta go do my homework, I'll talk to you tomorrow." I don't know why, but the topic of Finn Hudson really turns me off.

"_Wait, why does it sound like you're not happy for me? Why aren't you happy for me?_" She cries.

"San, I am happy for you. It's a good thing that Finn's single now. And who knows? Maybe someday in the near future you could end up with him." I reassured her.

"_You really think so?_" She asks, and I can detect the uncertainty in her voice.

"I know so."

"_Thanks Rach! You always know how to make me feel better._"

"Glad I could help."

"_I'll let you go now, I'll see you at school tomorrow, bye!_" Click. Before I could even reply back, she hangs up the phone.

I start doing my homework assignments on History and Spanish and then I was called to dinner by Marley. We talked and we talked a lot. About everything, except I couldn't really tell them about the Finn Hudson thing. Mom asked about how I was doing on both the glee club and the Cheerios and I tell her I'm doing great on both. Noah asks me about Santana. I swear, he's got it bad for her. But I just tell him that guys like him are not her types. And Marls? Well Marley always asks about awkward stuff and tonight was no different. She asked about our dad, and neither of us are quite sure how to answer that question. So Mom quickly changed the subject.

Oh, I forgot to tell you. I'm the oldest in a brood of three. I'm seventeen, Noah's fifteen, and Marls' twelve.

Anyways, after dinner, we all helped Mom clear the table and I was in charge of washing the plates. "Are you okay, Mom?" I asked.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" She reassures me, but I'm not buying it this time.

"Mom, you didn't seem okay to me when Marls asked about Dad."

She turned around and faced the window instead of me. I sighed.

"We'll tell Marley the truth when she's ready, okay? I mean, she's only twelve, Rachel."

I just nodded and said no more. I went on scrubbing the plates and later joined Noah and Marley in the living room in front of the TV. They were arguing about channels.

"Marley, it's my time. I need to watch basketball, it's a guy thing and you wouldn't understand. So hand me the remote."

"Noah, it was your time last night. Now, it's my time. I can't miss the premiere of Finn Hudson's new show, aka "The Dark Side" and I'm pretty sure you wouldn't understand that. Give it back!"

I groaned. These two never get along, at all. I quickly thought of a plan to solve _their_ problem.

"Noah, you can watch the game down here. Marls, come with me to my room and you can watch Finn's new show there."

That seemed to work.

"You wouldn't mind?" Marley asked me, unsure and I smiled at her.

"No, I wouldn't. Let's go now, shall we?

She nods and we go up to my room and watch the show. Well, Marley watched it. I merely just listened to showtunes on my iPod. I'm pretty sure Santana and Brittany were watching, too.

Another problem solved by Rachel Berry. Now all is right in the world.

That was me being dramatic, just so you guys know.

Even though I'm not really a fangirl of Finn Hudson, I am pretty excited and am actually looking forward to the day of his arrival at McKinley, in our pretty small town of Lima, Ohio.

**A/N: Don't forget to review! Criticism is welcome. :) Next chapter: Finn arrives at McKinley.**


	5. Finn's Deal

**Four**

Monday finally rolled around and I was being called into the office again. And it's only morning, for God's sake. It turns out I wasn't in any kind of trouble yet again. I was here to collect Finn Hudson. Er, I mean, Finley Hodgeson. Principal Figgins made the formal introductions, and then we were on our way. We walked down the hallways, not really talking or anything. I guess we were kind of checking each other out.

His true identity is disguised by his normal boy clothes. Clothes for school, I mean. He was wearing a checkered blue polo shirt, faded blue jeans, and Pumas. He had a defined jaw and brown hair that has blonde highlights. Finn, er, Finley was even wearing wide-rimmed glasses. One thing that really made me gasp was his eyes. They're like chocolate brown, just like mine.

"Uh… Rachel, right?" Were his first words at me.

I nodded.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

I nodded and whispered, "Uh-huh, I'm fine, why wouldn't I be?"

"Why are you whispering?"

"Nothing, you're just making me nervous is all."

Wait a minute. Did I really just say that out loud?

We were silent for a minute or two. And then he did the strangest thing.

He chuckled. "I make you nervous?"

"Uh-huh," I said, not meeting his eyes.

"Well, don't be nervous, there's nothing to be nervous about." He assured me and gently patted me on the back.

I just nodded and gave him a smile.

Before I knew it, we were in the Spanish room. As expected, San and Britt were the first ones to come up to us.

"Rachel, mi estrella, who's your new friend?" Santana asked me.

"San, this is Finley Hodgeson; he's the new transfer student I talked to you about. Finley, this is Santana, one of my best friends."

They shook hands and I introduced Britt and Finn—Finley, as well.

"How long will you be here, Finley?" Brittany asked him, surprising me and San.

"Two weeks and then I'm gone." He said and I don't know why I got sad all of sudden. When he said that he'll be here for two weeks and two weeks only.

Santana must've noticed my facial expression change, so she went, "Star, is everything okay?"

Finley and Brittany and Santana were all looking at me, worriedly.

"Oh, I'm fine. I'm great, San. Nothing for you to worry about, 'kay?" I assured them, with a smile.

I could tell they were unconvinced, especially Santana, but at least San dropped the subject.

The rest of the students entered the classroom, followed by Mr. Schue. We all sat down, me sitting in between Santana and Brittany. Finn, er, Finley opted to sit beside me, much to Santana's disappointment.

Mr. Schue set his stuff down on his table and took a quick look at Finn. He then looked at me and said, "Rachel, why don't you introduce us to the new transfer student."

I nodded and stood up. "Guys, this is Finley Hodgeson, the new transfer student from California. Finley, these are my classmates, and yours as well."

Hi's and hello's were exchanged. Mr. Schue nodded at the boy, "Great! Welcome to McKinley High, Finley. Hope you have a good stay here."

Finn just nodded and said nothing.

Then we got down to business. Mr. Schue's lesson for the day: translate English sentences to Spanish. I think it's going to be a lot of fun.

Mr. Schue then passed handouts for us to work on. The minute Santana got hers, she rolled her eyes. Of course, she already knows all of this. I don't even know why she enrolled in this class. One, she has a straight A in Spanish. And two, she's an expert in the Spanish language, what with being a Latina and all. She leaned in and whispered in my ear, "Patetico."

I think that's Spanish for pathetic.

I completely disagree, so I just whispered back, "en realidad, no. (Not really.) Sera divertido, Santana, yo prometo. (It will be fun, Santana, I promise.)"

"Your Spanish is slightly better, estrella." She noted and I just winked. She went back to her own work. I then felt a soft nudge beside me. It was Finley.

"How long will we be here?" He whispered.

I whispered back, "For another hour or so, but school lets us out at three."

His eyes widened at what I just said. "What? But it's only eight!"

"Yeah, I know it sucks, but you just gotta deal with it." I snapped, but not really meaning to. I never snap at people; well, this was certainly a first.

He just nodded and said no more, going back to his own handout.

I sighed. This was going to be a long day, I'm sure of it.

xxxxx

Finn followed us to all of our classes. Math, Calculus, History, AP English. Even in glee club. It was clear to me that he was avoiding my eyes throughout the whole meeting, though. It was awkward to say the least. But the minute the bell rang signaling us for lunch; Finn was up and off of his seat. I followed him down the hallway.

"Listen, about what I said earlier, I-I'm…"

I didn't get to finish since he cut me off.

"Save it, Rachel. Don't apologize, you did nothing wrong, okay?"

I was confused. This boy was weird, like, really weird. Why wasn't he mad at me? I was expecting him to be mad at me, but he isn't.

So I just said, "Uh… okay."

He then locked his eyes on mine.

"What?" I ask.

"Nothing…" He says and I could tell he has something he wanted to say.

"Just spit it out…" I checked the hallways to see that the coast was clear and whispered, "…Finn." Then, he did another strange thing. He gently dragged me to a classroom.

"You have to promise me something." He finally says.

Huh? We barely know each other and now, I have to promise him something? Who does this guy think he is?

"What may that be?" I manage to ask.

"You have to promise me… you have to promise me that you won't fall in love with me."

Is this his attempt of making a joke or something? Because it's really funny and hilarious. I barely know the guy! Of course I wouldn't fall in love with him; I don't even like him like _that_! I started laughing.

He looked at me in a strange way, and then, "What's so funny?"

I controlled my laughter and calmed myself. "Deal." I say.

He looks at me, confused. "Huh? What deal?"

I rolled my eyes. Does he have like a case of selective amnesia or something? Maybe he's just an airhead… or something. Sorry, that was mean.

I elaborated. "Deal, as in deal, I won't fall in love with you."

He did another strange thing. He gave me a hug. Then without a word, he let go of me.

"Great. Now that that's settled, go do what you gotta do."

It was my turn to be confused. "Huh? What are you talking about?"

"Go tour me around the school, silly." He says, with a chuckle.

I chuckled back. "Oh right, right. But first, let's go to lunch, yeah?"

He nodded and grabbed my hand, making me feel something I shouldn't feel. Hmm, weird.

All of a sudden, San and Britt appeared out of nowhere. "Rachie, wanna join us for lunch? Hey, Finley, wanna join with?" Brittany greeted us and that found both me and Finn nodding.

The four of us walked to the lunchroom and as expected, all conversations died down, all the attention shifted on us.

Finn's eyes widened. "This is the cafeteria?"

I nodded. "You ready?"

He nodded and the four of us joined the concession line.

I said to Finn, "Take anything you want. It's on me."

He ended up eating the salisbury steak with white rice. I'm good with a macro salad, Santana picked up the burrito and tacos, while Brittany preferred the baked ziti with pesto.

"Coach Sue's going to kill us for eating carbs, but I don't really care at the moment." Santana said and Brittany and I laughed along with the Latina.

"What's so funny?" Finn said for the second time today.

"Nothing," I replied and laughed some more, along with B and S.

Finn rolled his eyes. "You girls are weird."

Finn's right, though. We are kind of weird.

"That we are my friend, that we are." I giggled.

xxxxx

After lunch, we all went to our next classes. Then we heard the bell ring a couple of hours later and we were dismissed for the day. Finn's first day at McKinley High went better than _I_ expected. He totally enjoyed himself, I guess. I can't wait for the coming days.

But the only question on my mind was: why did he make that deal with me?

I'm pretty sure I'm going to find out exactly why he did what he did.

**A/N: It's Rein here and I hope you all like this chapter! :) Don't forget to review; criticisms are always welcome.**


	6. Mom's Advice and Prom Insecurity

**Five**

After school, San, Britt, and I went to BreadstiX to get some grub. We invited Finley to come along, but he declined, saying he had a lot of stuff to do at his condo in downtown Lima. We shared a few conversations here and there, then we all went home.

Well, Brittany went home stag; I rode with Santana because she offered to give me a ride and I could never refuse her, so I said yes. In the car ride on the way home, she asked me about a lot of stuff.

Here are a few:

One, what I thought about Finley Hodgeson.  
Two, if he's boyfriend material or not.  
And the clinchers I almost freaked out on:

If he's pretending to be someone he's not and whether or not he looks exactly like Finn Hudson, screen sensation _Finn Hudson_.

I answered her, honestly enough. Well, no, not actually. I answered her honestly with the first two questions and I lied about her 3rd and 4th questions.

This isn't easy at all; it's actually harder than I thought it would be.

Santana didn't seem to make a big deal out of all of it, though, thank goodness. I'm in the clear.

For now, anyway.

Then she dropped me off, blew me a kiss, and went on her way.

I feel bad now, lying to my friends about Finn. I need someone to talk to or else I'll go crazy.

Maybe this is one problem I can't fix on my own, so who better to talk to than…?

Well, I know exactly who to talk to.

xxxxx

My mom, Shelby, is actually a good-advice giver. Maybe that's where I inherited it from. I mean, the solving problems thing. I trust her and I love opening up to her, so that night, after dinner, I went straight to her room to talk about what's been happening lately.

"Mom? Can I talk to you?" 'Real smart, Rachel, real smart.' I tell myself sarcastically in my head.

She nods and pats the vacant space on the bed, motioning for me to sit down with her. I sat down and took a deep breath.

"What's up? Is everything okay?" She asks.

"Yeah, everything's fine, Mom." I lied, but my mom saw right through it.

"Rachel, I know you. You only come to me when there's a problem or situation going on. So, really, what's up? Come on, I'm sure it couldn't be that bad."

I sighed. "Well, okay. But please promise me you won't be mad at me. Or something."

"I promise. Come on, Rachel, you're kinda scaring me." My mom says and then, her eyes widened. "Holy crap, are you pregnant?"

My eyes widened as well. "Mom, it's not like that; I told you, I'm saving myself for marriage!" I shouted, but not really meaning to. "Mom, I'm sorry for shouting at you, it's just… it's not like that, okay?"

She nodded and hugged me. I let myself melt into her arms.

"I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions. Now go on, tell me then. Tell me what's going on with you," she says and I tell her what's really up.

About Finn. About the teachers wanting me to keep his identity a secret and everything. About me lying to my friends about the whole Finn thing. AND about Finn making a deal with me, which was weirdly enough to say the least—that I shouldn't fall in love with him.

"Well, do you want to know what I think?" She asks me and I nod against her chest.

"Please do; your opinions always matter, Mom."

"Okay. First up, what you can do is to keep Finn's identity a secret for as long as you can; but, when you can't keep it on the DL anymore, then just tell the world and all they have to do is deal with the aftermath and consequences, whether they like it or not. Second, yes, you are lying to your friends, but you are doing it to protect someone else's secret from getting out in the open. When you tell Brittany and Santana the truth, sure they will be mad at first, but they will get over it quickly, I'm sure of it. They're your best friends; they accept and love you for who you are. And last but definitely not the least, I'm not sure why that Finn guy made that deal with you, but, you better try, and you better try hard in keeping your promise to him. But if you break it, well, just take things one step at a time and don't stress out too much."

I looked up and smiled at my mom. She always makes me feel better during situations like this.

"Thank you, Mom. You really are the best Mom ever," I said and she smiled back at me.

"So, are you okay now?" She asks me. I nod. "Better than before, thanks again Mom."

"You're welcome, honey." She hugs me tighter, and then afterwards, she lets me go.

I went out of her room, bearing a huge smile on my face, and headed to my own room. I started doing my homework and then I went to bed early that night, sleeping with a smile still plastered on my face.

My day started out great, then it became awkward, then it became great again; this time, thanks to my mother, Shelby.

xxxxx

I woke up the next morning still bearing a smile on my face. I did my morning rituals, ate a quick breakfast, got ready, and then I walked, yes, I walked to school.

I wasn't expecting Finn to show up, since he was absent for Spanish class, but he did however, made his presence known when he joined us for another glee club meeting.

"Hey," I greeted San and Britt, and they hey'd me back. I took my usual seat, next to Santana. That's when Finn showed up and took a seat beside me.

"Hey guys," Finn greeted everyone in the room, but I wasn't really paying attention. Mr. Schue entered the room, grabbed his black marker, unscrewed the cap, and wrote these on the board:

PROM – ENTERTAINMENT OF THE NIGHT: GLEE CLUB

All of us got excited; well actually, some of the glee clubbers got excited. I on the other hand groaned.

Mr. Schue, Santana, Brittany, Finn, and some others shoot me weird, confused, and strange looks.

"Is there a problem, Rachel?" Mr. Schue asked me.

"No, there's no problem, I'm just not going." I told them all and the reactions were unanimous: they were all shocked.

"But w-why?" Tina Cohen-Chang stuttered. She's an Asian-American girl and she's one of the few people here at McKinley who has a stutter. But I think she's kind of faking it, though.

I shrugged.

"Rachel, it's a school tradition, you can't just not go!" Mercedes Jones, one of the few Black American girls here at McKinley told me. She's also a little bit of a diva just like me.

"I'm not going, because I don't have a date. I'm not pretty enough like Santana or Brittany; no one's gonna want to go with someone like me." I said simply, my insecurities getting the better of me. Then the strangest thing happened: tears spilled from my eyes.

I couldn't take it anymore. I couldn't take the looks they were all giving me, so I stood up and walked out of the room, not knowing that Finn, Santana, and Brittany followed me.

"Hey, Rachel. Don't be like that. I'll be your date." Finley said.

"I don't need your sympathy vote, Finley, go back in there." I said, trying to keep my tears at a minimum.

"Rachel, you're just being insecure, don't be like that." Brittany said, wrapping her arms around me. Santana joined in on the hug.

And then Finn suddenly, out of the blue had an idea. "I know! Why don't we all go together? I like the ratio, three girls to one guy, yeah I like it definitely."

"That sounds like a pretty great idea, Finley! Whatdya think, Rachie?" Brittany asked me and I nodded against her shoulder.

"I love it. I guess I'll come to the prom with you guys." I said and smiled at them. Santana wiped my tear-stained eyes & cheeks.

"Yay, we're going to Prom, and we're going together!" Brittany and Santana squealed and I found myself chuckling with Finn.

I guess I, Rachel Berry, really was going to a school dance. Well, this should be fun. I can't wait.

**A/N: We took turns writing this chapter and we wrote this in a rush, because we're going somewhere for our last few days of summer vacation, so all grammar and spelling mistakes are sorely our responsibility. But we hope you guys like this one! Thanks for reading! :) –Rein and Yvonne**


	7. Telling my friends

**Six**

Thursday night, I was in for a surprise. Or so Mom said.

Apparently, I have a visitor waiting for me downstairs. I ask her who's our houseguest, and she tells me it's Finn. As in Finn Hudson.

"Mom, you're kidding." I stated and my mom shrugged.

"Don't believe me? See for yourself, sweetie. You can thank me later. Or not." She says and leaves my room, probably disappearing into hers.

I practically half-walked, half-ran downstairs just to see if what Mom said was true. And she was right. Finn Hudson is here, at my house, in my living room.

"Finley! What are you doing here? And how did you know where I lived?" I asked, curious about a lot of things.

"Rachel, hey. First of all, I'm here to talk to you, and second, I asked Santana where you lived. I hope that that's okay with you. If not, I can just go." He says simply and I shook my head.

I went, "It's… it's fine. You just surprised me, is all." He nods and says no more.

We were both silent and I decided to check him out. He's wearing normal clothes again; a light blue slim-fit t-shirt and a pair of brown corduroy shorts. He's even ditched his Pumas for a pair of brown sandals. Is this real or am I dreaming? Finn Hudson looks totally… normal.

"You look normal," I blurt out before I could even think about taking it back.

"Uh…thanks, I guess?" He says, looking at his clothes then back to me. "You look pretty normal yourself." He says with a wink.

I look down at what I'm wearing. Pink (sexy, but not too daring) camisole, pink flowery pajamas, and pink fluffy bedroom slippers. I rolled my eyes at him. "Uh… thanks, I guess?" I said, mimicking his words earlier.

"Actually, I think you look cute." He says and smiles his trademark dopey grin at me. I blushed and said "thanks" in reply.

Was Finn flirting with me and was I flirting back? I don't know.

"So, what did you really come here for?" I asked, still curious about a lot of things.

"Here as in your house or here as in Lima?" Finn answers me back with a question.

"Let me rephrase. Why did you come here to my house and why did you come to Lima?"

"Okay, I came here, to your house, because I wanna talk to you about something. But first, to answer your question, I'm here in Lima because I'm researching for a role and now I know exactly what role I should play in my next movie or show that's definitely in the works." He rambles.

"What's the role, then?"

"Teen secret agent."

"Oh, that sounds cool."

"Yeah. Anyways, I wanted to talk to you about something."

"You've said that already, but, go on. I'm listening."

"About the deal I made with you."

"Yeah, I'm wondering why you made that deal with me. So, why?"

"I made that deal with you because I knew that you'd be different."

"Different how?"

"When I meet up with fans, they're like, 'oh, I love you Finn Hudson!' and you, you were just different. You're not like them, you're not like those girls. So, I put you to the test and made that deal with you, to see if you would in fact, fall in love with me." He confesses, but it still doesn't add up to why he made that specific deal with me, ordinary girl Rachel Berry. I didn't say anything about that, though.

Instead, I said, "Yeah. While I admit that I like your show and your movies, I'm not that much of a fan, no offense, like Brittany and Santana are. And as for the falling in love part, I don't even like you like… you know. I like you as a friend. I hope that doesn't hurt you in any way for that matter."

"No, actually, it doesn't hurt me." He says in an odd voice and looks down for a moment. I sighed, did I say something wrong? So I changed the subject.

"That must've really sucked. Ya know, when you found out about Quinn Fabray and that guy ending up married."

He glared at me. "I don't wanna talk about it, Rachel," he growls. "Look, I—I, gotta go. I'll see you at school tomorrow. Bye." He says and leaves, before I could even get a word in.

I sighed and put my head in my hands.

Did I say something wrong, or offensive, even? What did I do to make him act like that?

Little did I know, someone was listening on our entire conversation the whole time we were there. It was my little sister, Marley. She was, apparently, in the kitchen, squealing with glee as she realized who I was talking to.

"Marley, shut up and just follow me to my room." I ordered and she followed me up the stairs. When we got to my room, and I've locked my door, Marley didn't waste time in jumping at me. Well, actually, she was jumping like a love-crazed fool on my bed.

"Rachel, ohmygod, that was Finn Hudson! You were talking to my celebrity idol, Finn Hudson! Oh my God! Why didn't you get his autograph?"

"Marley, stop doing that before you hurt yourself." I scolded, but she didn't listen to me.

"Oh my God, you're so lucky, oh my God, I've got to call Santana and tell her about this!"

Excuse me? Since when are my little sis and best friend close with each other?

"What did you just say?" I say, the shock palpable in my voice.

Before she could even reply, she has my phone in her hands and has already dialed my BFF's number.

"Hey, that's mine, give it back!" I shouted, but Marley has my phone in a tight grip.

"_Hello? Rachel, what's up mi estrella?_" I heard Santana's voice on the other end.

"Santana, it's Marley. I know we're not that close, but something big just happened and you gotta get here now, I have something major to tell you!" Marley squealed into the phone.

"_Marley, what are you doing with Rachel's phone and what do you mean get here now? Where is here, exactly? And what did you need to tell me?_" Santana demanded.

I shoot Marley a death glare as if to say, 'say the words and you'll be sorry'; it worked, she tossed me my phone back. "Whoa, scary Rachel," she mumbles like a scared little girl and I smirked.

"_Hello? Marley, are you still there?_" Santana's voice brought me back.

"San, it's Rachel."

"_Oh, what's up, Rach? Darn, you and your lil' sis are really weird._"

"Yeah, I know. Wait, no. I'm weird, Marley's just… Marley. Anyways, if it's not too late, can you come down to BreadstiX? I need to tell you something… something that Marley's about to tell you before I interrupted her." I rambled, took one quick look at Marley, and she gave me a pout. I gave her a smirk in return.

"_O-kay… fine, but can't you tell me over the phone? You're being quite mysterious and well, I'm quite… busy._" She says and truthfully, I was sorry I asked. I know what she meant by 'busy'.

"Okay, ew, I really didn't need to know 'bout that, but stop whatever it is you're doing. This is major major important and I can't tell you over the phone. Please just meet us at BreadstiX in ten and then we'll let you go, please San?"

"_Okay, but only for you, Rach, only for you._"

"Thanks San, see ya!" I hang up and put the phone down on my bedside table.

I look at Marley and say, "I'm telling her, this is not your secret to keep, okay?"

She pouts some more, but nods. We quickly changed and then, without any more words between us, we go downstairs, out the door, and into my car, on our way to BreadstiX.

xxxxx

We got there in record time, and when we entered we saw San _**and**_ Britt on one of the booths. I took a seat beside Santana and Marley chose to sit beside Brittany.

The moment I sat down, realization quickly washed over me, the puzzle pieces coming together full circle and I gasped. "Oh my God! To put it bluntly, you guys were having s-e-x or sweet lady kisses or whatever you wanna call it when Marley called, didn't you?" I accused and Santana winks at me.

"Oh my God, I'm sorry I asked, now I'm going to be scarred for life." I say, regret clear in my voice. Santana was laughing at me.

"Sex isn't dating, if it was Santana and I would be dating," Brittany piped up and all of us went silent at that.

"Rachel, what's sex?" Marley asked. Oh shoot.

"Uh… it's something two people do to show how much they love each other and that's that." I rambled quickly, and Marls nodded. Now I'm going to go home later, with a scolding from Mom. Yay.

'It's now or never, Rachel' a voice said inside my head. I sighed.

"Anyways, we're here because I have to tell you guys something." I began, but San interrupted me.

"That's already been said, and yet to be done."

I ignored it and started all over again. "Remember Finley Hodgeson? The transfer student from California?"

San and Britt were nodding at me.

"Well, actually, you're right Santana. He's not who he says he is." As I say this, I can see San getting confused, so I elaborated. "In actuality, he's Finn Hudson."

They were then staring at me like I grew two more heads.

"You're kidding," Santana says.

"No, I actually am telling you guys the truth. He's actually Finn Hudson, in the flesh."

I prepared myself for what was going to happen next, but it was still annoying. San, Britt, and Marls screamed like there's no tomorrow.

"Finn Hudson, Finn Hudson, Finn Hudson!" They chanted for a good ten minutes until I shut them up because people were staring in our direction.

"So, that's what you wanted to tell me earlier, huh Marley?" Santana asks, earning a big nod and a huge grin from Marley. Sigh.

"I still don't see why he's posing as a transfer student." Brittany said.

"He's posing as a transfer student because he's researching for a role." I tell her.

"And the role is…?" Marley and Santana asked me in unison.

"A teen secret agent for his new show and/or movie that's in the works."

"But I still don't understand what your role is in this exactly, mi estrella." Santana says to me.

"Mr. Schue, Figgins, and Ms. P asked me to be his student guide and keep his identity a secret to avoid chaos like what you guys just did, but now, it's out in the open."

"Who else knows, Rachie?" Brittany asks me.

"Well, you guys, Marley, and my Mom."

They were silent as they processed this and then I started rambling.

"Look, I'm sorry if in a way I lied to you guys about Finn. I hope you guys aren't mad at me and I can't deal with it if you're mad at me, you're my best friends and I don't know what I will do if you guys are just… you know, mad at me."

"Rachel, breathe. We're not mad at you, well, I know I'm not, I don't know about Brit though." Santana said.

"What? Of course I'm not mad at you, Rachie. I can never be mad at you. You're adorable and everybody likes you, including me." Brittany says, with a giggle. I giggled back.

I nodded and gave them a smile.

"Thanks for telling us the truth, Rachel. Who knows what'll happen if we found out from someone else." Santana said.

"Thank you for being the best friends ever!" I said to San and Britt and they just smiled.

"Now that you guys know, please don't tell anyone, okay?"

"I promise." Marley says.

"I will take it to my grave." Santana.

"I swear I won't tell anyone, cross my heart, hope to die." Brittany said.

Then a realization came to me. "Oh my God; we're going with Finn to the prom!"

Brittany and Santana squealed along with Marley, and I just smiled.

xxxxx

So, Mom scolded us for getting home late that night (we got home at 11:30) but it really wasn't a big deal to me. I'm just glad that my friends know about this, too. Maybe things will be easier for me from now on.

**A/N: Hey guys! It's Rein and Yvonne here and we probably suck for not updating, but voila, here's a new chapter! We just got back from our vacation and we're looking tan all over. Finally, we've achieved one of our summer goals: get a tan. We're so happy! :)**

**Hope you guys liked/loved this one!**

**Question time! Now that Brittany and Santana knows about Finn's real identity, will they keep their promise to Rachel or will they break it?**

**Stay tuned for the answer! ;)**

**Over and out!**

**-xoxo, R & Y :)**


	8. Pandemonium

**Seven**

When I entered McKinley's double doors that Friday morning, I wasn't expecting _this_ to happen.

What's _this_, exactly? Well, this, as in chaos in the hallways.

All because of one Finn Hudson.

Oh. My. God.

People were crowded around him in the sea of lockers, each and every one of McKinley's student body were trying to touch him, get his autograph, and last but definitely not the least, get a picture with him. It was total pandemonium to say the least.

I spotted Britt and San in a corner, I walked over to them and said over the screams of the many fangirls, "Britt, San, what did you guys do? Did you guys tell?"

"It wasn't us, Rachel! We didn't do anything! Believe it or not, it was actually Finn." Santana tells me and I raised my eyebrows at her, demanding an explanation.

San elaborated, "He apparently forgot to wear his wide-rimmed glasses and then one person stole a glance at him and that's where it all started."

I put my head in my hands. "This wasn't how I wanted all of McKinley High to find out… and God, how could Finn be so stupid?" I mumbled.

Brittany patted me on the back gently and opened her arms. I didn't hesitate a minute longer and allowed myself to melt in her embrace.

"It's all going to be okay, Rachie, don't worry." She cooed to me. I shook my head in disagreement. "No, it's not going to be okay."

"Ay dios mio!" San cried out, making me and Britt look at her in concern.

"Sanny, what's wrong?" Brittany asked our Latina best friend.

Santana just looks straight ahead and points to where she's looking. Brittany thankfully let go of her hold on me and I looked to where Santana was pointing. I'm confused. Yeah, that was Finn, but what does that mean?

"He wants you, Rachel." Santana says, answering my unanswered question.

"Rachel! RACHEL!" Finn screams out my name and tries his best to reach his hand out to me.

"Go, Rachel. We'll be fine." Brittany said and I was about to go to him, but my body was suddenly rooted to the spot.

"RACHEL, COME ON!" Finn screams and I tried my best to move, but I couldn't.

"Oh for God's sakes, Rachel! Just go!" Santana shrieks and shoves me in Finn's direction.

Finn and I broke into a run, the fangirls _**and**_ fanboys following, and before I knew it, we were out of the school and realized we were now in the parking lot.

His bodyguard opened the door of his limo for us and we went in without a word said between us. Finn closed the door of the car, er, limo and said to his driver, "Pete, just go and drive somewhere, anywhere."

"I need specifics here, Mr. Hudson." Pete replied and I saw Finn rolling his eyes.

"Just go drive us to the condo." He ordered and Pete nodded, driving away from the school.

Without a word, he reached for my hand, and I grabbed on to it like a lifeline, again making me feel something I shouldn't feel for him.

What was up with these feelings? I don't know.

I allowed myself to lean my head in Finn's shoulder, and Finn just let me.

What am I doing in a limo with Finn Hudson?

I don't know, but I guess we'll find out.

**A/N: I'm leaving you guys with a cliffhanger, so sorry about that. :( Glee is on tonight; it's only a replay, but still, I loved watching All or Nothing, so I'm going to watch it again. I'm going to watch it again with my BFF and we'll squeal together (that's a given) on the Brittana and Klaine and Wemma scenes. Please tell me what you think. Ta ta for now! :)**

**-Rein**


	9. Something Unexpected Happens

**Eight**

When I went in with Finn Hudson in his limo, I didn't know what to do. I didn't know what to think, let alone how to act around him. My head was still on his shoulder and his hand was still holding on to my own, tight. I don't know why he's holding it like that. He's holding on to it like a lifeline.

Was this a date or not? I'm pretty sure this is not a date. He just wanted me for some strange reason. We have been quiet for a few minutes now and it was kinda awkward and uncomfortable for me, so I decided to break the spell.

"Finn? Why did you take me with you? Because you see, I have a school to get to which I'm really late for, I have classes to attend, I have to nominate prom king and queen candidates, and I have a glee club to lead, unlike you who needs to go back to Hollywood and live the fabulous and easy life…" I rambled, but I stopped when I felt his hand pull away from mine.

"Rachel, just shut up and let us enjoy the peace and quiet." He demanded, his voice gruff. But I wasn't going to have it his way.

"Look, I just wanna…" I was cut off again by him putting a finger to my lips effectively quieting me. I crossed my arms over my chest and groaned, making him smirk at me.

I've been reading gossip sites about anything related to Finn. I know he's still hurting about the whole Quinn Fabray fiasco, which got me thinking: how could he go like that, from liking one fellow screen sensation to liking one ordinary girl… well, Rachel Berry? Couldn't he tell that I didn't like him back? At least, not in that way?

Maybe I'm just daydreaming. 'Get ahold of yourself, Rachel!' I scolded myself in my head and shuffled away from Finn, leaning my head on the window, with this faraway look in my eyes. I felt the backseat shift a little and I knew why that is. Finn moved closer to me. I rolled my eyes, quite thankful he couldn't see.

Is he like teasing me or something? Again, I don't know.

I stood up, trying to move to the other seat in the limo, but I failed since Pete apparently made a U-turn before the red lights came on. And me? Well, I landed straight onto Finn's lap. He caught me just in time. The way he was groping onto my waist made me think he was some kind of a perv or something.

We looked into each other's eyes and saw that our eye colors were the same color; deep brown. His was oozing temptation and mine was inviting. Next thing I knew, we were kissing each other. Yep, you read that right. Rachel Berry was kissing Finn Hudson. In his limo.

I don't know who made the first move; maybe it was me or maybe it was him, I'm not really sure. When we pulled away, I say, "Look, I think it was me who kissed you first, but…" He cut me off again with his finger on my lips.

"I'm not sure it was you who made the first move, Rachel." He said. Oh. Oh, so that means… that means he's the one who kissed me first and I kissed him back.

Is this real or is this only just a dream; me, Rachel Berry, getting her first kiss with the most unlikely person ever, Finn Hudson? It seems like a dream to me, but Finn proved me wrong as he kissed me again.

Yep, it's real. It's totally real.

**A/N: It's Rein here and I hope you guys liked this chapter! Were you guys surprised with the Finchel kiss? ;) I myself am surprised when I wrote this one. Thanks for reading! More Finchel moments on the next chapters! Stay tuned!**


	10. A Heated Argument

**Nine**

We eventually had to come up for some oxygen, so we stopped kissing each other.

"What just happened, Finn?" I asked.

"We just kissed each other, Rachel." He replied.

He said it like what just happened wasn't obvious to me.

"I know that, but… but why?" I pressed and I can see it was making him annoyed.

"Look. I kissed you, because I like you. You kissed me back, because… I don't know why. That's that." He answers me, but it still wasn't enough an answer to me.

"Oh. Oh, okay, let me just clarify something here. You kissed me because you like me, yet you made that stupid deal with me." I rambled, but he didn't reply, so I continued. "Did you even think that maybe I kinda, sorta, maybe, might have some feelings for you, too?"

He turns to me, with a glare in his eyes. "You were the one who said you didn't like me back, remember?"

"Well yeah, but something definitely changed." I reasoned. I then remembered something, so I asked him, "Wait, you still didn't answer my question. Why did you make that deal with me?"

He shouted, "Because it's bullshit, Rachel! Wanna know why? Because I also made that deal with Quinn, she said she didn't like me like that, and then she likes me all of a sudden, a relationship blooms between us and then boom! Ends up married with a guy she barely even knew. I made that deal with you because it's bullshit, it's stupid, and I just wanna test you, and now look what happened."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Don't lay all the blame on me! You made the deal and I accepted, you are as much to blame here as I am! And don't even think about comparing me to Quinn! I'm not Quinn, I'm me, Rachel! Weren't you the one who told me I was different? What, did that change too?" I ranted. He didn't answer me. He didn't even look me in the eye.

I launched myself on the other seat in the limo and looked down at my hands.

I can't believe he just compared me to one Quinn Fabray, I can't believe it! God, how could he do that? I couldn't take it anymore. I bit my bottom lip and I felt it quivering, and then, that's when the tears fell. He must've noticed my tears since he said in a much gentler tone, "Rachel. Oh my God, I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I didn't mean all of that. Please, please don't cry." 'Too late Finn, you're too late.'

"Just… just don't talk to me. Okay?" I choked out and I saw him contemplating it for a bit, before finally nodding his head at my request. I cried myself out. He was the first person who's ever made me cry coz really, I never cry.

He was quiet in his seat, looking out the window with this faraway look in his eyes and I was quiet in my seat, looking down at my hands, whilst the tears kept on falling. Perfect. Just what I needed. I needed some quiet. I needed some space. Yet, it was awkward to say the least.

This was getting more and more awkward than ever. All I could think about was: when the hell are we getting to that condo?

**A/N: uh-oh, first Finchel fight and they're not even a couple yet! Oh no! :( What do you think is going to happen next? Co-wrote this chapter with Yvonne, hope you guys liked it! Thanks for reading!**


	11. About Two Different Families & My Secret

**Ten**

We finally reached his condo in downtown Lima and the instant Pete parked the damn limo on Finn's garage, I was up and off of my seat and out of there since I couldn't stand another hour of awkwardness with Finn.

He followed me, running as fast as he could to catch up with me. "Rachel, wait up!"

I ignored him and walked faster, entering his condo like I owned the place. Let me just tell you, his condo was like, really huge for just one person.

He finally caught up with me, in his kitchen. "God how could someone so short have such long and fast legs like that?" Finn said laughing, attempting to make me laugh, but I wasn't going to give in to that satisfaction. I decided to scan the room instead of looking into his brown eyes.

Finn sighed, running a hand through his brown hair in the process. "Look Rachel, I said I was sorry. If you want me to…" I stopped him from going any further as I started rambling, "You said you were sorry, and I get that, but really Finn? What you said really hurt me. How dare you compare me to your ex-girlfriend, how dare you? If you're going to ask me to forgive you and forget what happened back in the limo, then I'm sorry, 'cause I can't give you that right now. Oh, and before I forget, I'm sorry too. For accepting the stupid deal you made with me and for kissing you back. I'm sorry, really, I am."

Finn nodded, staring at me with this somber expression in his eyes. "I understand."

"Also, I'm backing out. You can be Santana and Brittany's date for the prom because me having to go with you as my date would just be pure awkward, no offense."

"Okay."

"Where's the guest room?" I managed to ask him without looking in his eyes.

"Fourth room on the left," came his reply.

"Thanks." I say and saying nothing else, I trudged up the stairs, walking and turning to the left, only stopping once I found the guest room.

It was quite big to say the least; there's two queen sized beds, medium sized vanity cabinets, a flat screen TV mounted on the wall and there's even an elaborate bathroom. Since it's clear that I'm not going to make it to school today, I guess I'm staying here for the day. Unfortunately.

I wanted to call Santana or Britt, but I remembered that they're still in class. So I didn't call them and just opted to entertain myself by… staring at the ceiling. Yep, that's what I did. Well, after I was done staring at the ceiling, I was bored as hell so I turned on the flat screen and settled on watching cartoons.

I watched Mickey Mouse and Friends and just laughed out loud at the funny scenes, not caring if he heard me or whatever. Then there was a knock on the door. It was Finn asking me if I wanted some slushie that he prepared especially for us.

I was quite bored and tired of being in this room all by myself, so I said, "Sure."

I joined him downstairs in the kitchen. I sat on the countertop so that he could at least see me since I'm really petite and he's like… really tall. He handed me a tall glass of cherry slushie with a straw in it and I took the expensive looking glass carefully, eager to sip on it.

"Thanks," I said and he nodded.

We didn't talk for hours. I just sipped at my cherry slushie and quite frankly, it's really really good. I then decided to just stare at the beautiful garden outside his condo and Finn's just… well, he's busy talking to someone on his phone.

When he was done and since I can't really stay quiet anymore, I asked, "So… you live here all by yourself?" And I finally looked in his eyes and he did the same, copying my actions.

He answered, "Yeah. It's okay, though. I'm used to it."

"This slushie is really good, by the way. Thanks Finn."

"Glad you like it. And you're welcome, Rachel."

Silence. Then as if on cue, I break the awkward silence that settled between us.

"Look, I'm sorry about my attitude earlier. You know, walking in here like I owned the place."

"It's fine. I'm sorry as well. I really should learn to be more sensitive to people's feelings and I really should learn to choose my words carefully and wisely before saying them. I didn't mean to hurt you, by the way."

I nodded. "Let's just forget what happened. Let's just… talk."

He says, beginning to get curious, "Okay, sure. What did you wanna talk about?"

"Well Finn, first of all, I just wanna apologize for my friends back there."

"It's fine, Rachel; I get that all the time. They just don't realize that celebrities are normal people, too." He says and I reminded him of one thing.

"Well, you shouldn't have been _that_ stupid, no offense. Forgetting to wear your wide-rimmed glasses and all that."

He just laughs at that and I joined him, because it feels so good to laugh.

We settled into comfortable silence, not one of us daring to break it. But in the end, it was me who broke the curse, as I asked him the question that's been eating at me ever since I stepped in his condo. "Um, your family? Where are they, if you don't mind me asking?"

He says simply, "Well, my mom and dad divorced a long time ago."

"I'm sorry I asked," I apologized and he just dismissed it with a wave of his large hand. And then… he started telling me more about his family.

"Don't be. Anyways, my dad; his name is Finn Christopher Hudson—see I was named after him; I'm Finn Christopher Hudson Jr.—he was in the army, but he died in Iraq when I was nine."

"I'm so sorry."

He laughs and asks, "Look. Are you gonna keep interrupting me?"

I apologized, "Sorry. I have this bad habit of interrupting people when they talk and I also tend to ramble like what I'm doing now, but… sorry again. Go on, tell me more."

He tells me, "But my mom remarried when I was sixteen and so I have a stepdad. His name is Burt Hummel and my mom's name is Carole Hudson. And before I forget, I also have a stepbrother, name's Kurt. We're the Hummel-Hudson family, or the Hudmels for short. They stayed behind in LA."

I nodded, slowly processing all the information he's told me so far. "Oh. So… what happened to Kurt's mom?" I can't help but ask.

A sad expression clouded over Finn's eyes as he answered my question. "Kurt's mom died because of breast cancer and Burt was almost broken beyond repair. That is until he met my mom."

I began to get even more curious about his family. "And what happened? To your mom and your stepdad, I mean?"

"Well, my mom's a psychiatrist. Burt's a tire shop owner. Anyways, he started seeking for help and my mom's the one who reached out to him. She helped Burt cope with his depression and he slowly but surely got better, thanks to mom's help. And then long story short, they fell in love."

"Was it love at first sight?"

"No, I don't think so. I'm gonna have to ask my mom about that one, just to be sure."

"What about you and Kurt?"

"Me and Kurt? At first, it was awkward between us. It took some time getting used to. Our new family situation, I mean. But we both took a chance and we just understood each other, ya know? Kurt and I bonded over his mom and my dad's deaths. We treat each other like brothers instead of just stepbrothers. We even fight like brothers. We're actually pretty close, to be honest. He's always had my back and I always had his. I miss him the most, actually."

"Seems like you have a pretty close knit family. I wish I had one like yours," I sigh.

Finn asks, "What do you mean? Care to share? I'm not pressuring you, just tell me if you're ready, okay?"

I shook my head. "No, you told me a lot about your family, I guess it's only fair that I tell you about mine."

Finn just nodded at that and I began telling him about my family.

"Okay, here goes. My mom's name is Shelby, my brother's name is Noah but everyone calls him Puck, he's fifteen years old, and the baby in the family is Marley, my twelve year-old sister who's a huge fan of yours."

He interrupted, asking me the question I didn't want him to ask. "And what about your dad?"

I sighed. "His name is Carlos. He and my mom divorced ages ago; I was too young to even understand what was happening."

Whispering, he asks, "May I ask what happened?"

"Well, here's the awkward part. They divorced because mom found out that dad had a child, a daughter to be exact, with another woman."

There. That was the secret I've been keeping for a few years now, and he's the first one I told. I never told my friends about this because I wasn't sure how to tell them. Well, actually, I never told anyone.

Finn nodded, "Oh. So your dad's daughter from another mother… she's your half-sister?"

"Yes, it appears so." I told him.

"Do your friends know about this?" That was another question I wasn't expecting to hear from him. I shook my head in reply. "I've kept this a secret for so many years now; because my mother asked me to. And you're the first person I told."

"Why not tell them then? Santana and Brittany, I mean."

"I can't tell them…" I paused for a bit, and then added, "Well, I especially can't tell Santana."

"Why? Santana seems trustworthy to me," Finn was so stubborn; why won't he just drop it? I shook my head again; he didn't seem to understand, but I was going to make him understand.

Taking a deep breath, I answered him, as calmly as I possibly could (even though I'm feeling like such a nervous wreck inside and I felt like throwing up), "Because Santana's my half-sister from another mother."

**A/N: Cliffhanger! OHMYGOD. OHMYGOD. OHMYGOD. SANTANA IS ACTUALLY RELATED TO RACHEL. OH. MY. GOD. :O**

**Did you guys expect that to happen? I and Yvonne didn't expect it at all, but one night, we were just playing around with our ideas and then it came to us: why not add a little drama in here by making Rachel and Santana half-sisters? Interesting, huh? So we took turns writing it and now, we're just slowly recovering from our shock. Tell us what you guys think, we love reading reviews from our dear readers and we really appreciate them. –Rein and Yvonne**

**Question time! Will Rachel ever tell Santana the secret she's been keeping from her for so long or will she just keep it on the DL and let Santana find out from someone else?**


	12. Hanging Out and Making Out

**Eleven**

It has been five minutes since I told him about my deepest and darkest secret… oh, wait. Was it five or ten? I don't know, really, but Finn hasn't had anything to say yet, at all. I guess he was trying to process it slowly and making himself understand my situation, and I just let him.

When it finally dawned on him, he said, or rather joked, "Wow. Your situation seems so complicated, yet it could make for a good soap opera." And then he started laughing. Out loud, mind you.

I poked him, hard, in the ribs, but he didn't seem to notice.

Finn obviously doesn't understand the seriousness of my situation with my family as he kept laughing, mostly to himself. It's really pissing me off, _he's_ really pissing me off and I really wanna do something, anything just to stop him from going cray or whatever.

So I shouted, "Hey! This isn't funny!" He just kept on laughing, but when he saw the look I was currently giving him, he stopped. Finally.

"Too soon to joke, huh?" He asks, stating the obvious.

I flashed him an "are you kidding me" look in reply.

"Sorry. I was just trying to lighten the mood, but obviously, that was wrong of me and again, I'm sorry." He apologized and I just nodded at that.

He asks me another question; this time, I wasn't really sure how to answer him.

"Um… so how or when are you planning to tell Santana?"

I shrugged, because truthfully, I don't know to tell her.

Finn's still looking at me, as if expecting an oral answer and I sighed, and started rambling.

"I mean, yeah I'm gonna have to tell her somehow someday sometime soon, but I don't know how to do that. I don't know how to tell her that she's my half-sister, all I know and all I could think about right now was how she was going to react. San's reaction might be positive or negative, but I think— I'm sure it's more of the latter. I especially don't want her to be mad at me, I mean she has been my best friend my whole life, I don't know what I will do if I lose her because of this. I don't want that to happen— hell I don't even wanna think about that happening or else I will…"

I didn't get to finish as Finn crashed his lips on mine, effectively silencing me. I was surprised at first, but I responded back to his kiss and even deepened it, made it more passionate. Then, just as things were about to get more heated between us, Finn pulled away making me upset and disappointed—understatement of the day.

"What's wrong?" I breathed out.

He says, "Rachel, if we do this—if we do this, it'll be too hard to stop."

"Oh no, um— let's take it easy, casual. Let's make it casual." I said in reply.

So casual it is, then.

Finn and I made out on his couch for several minutes, each kiss getting more and more heated and passionate. I actually found myself enjoying this. With a guy I didn't even like at first, but now… I guess you could say everything has changed.

I then felt him unbuttoning my pants and then I shoved him away, hard, Finn landing on the floor with a loud _thud_. I clamped a hand on my mouth and later facepalmed myself.

"Oh my God, Finn, I'm so sorry. Are you okay? Are you hurt? Are you in pain or anything? Can I get you some ice?" I rambled, clearly worried for him. He looked up at me.

"Rachel its fine, it's my fault anyway, I started doing something you were against with and for that, I'm sorry. I really am." He apologized, sounding very gentlemanly.

"I'm sorry I shoved you. To put it lightly, I'm not ready for _that_, and I'm sorry again for shoving you." I apologized in return.

"I told you, it's nothing. Really, I'm fine." He said again, and this time, I believed him. I helped him get settled on the couch again. "And don't apologize. I don't want you to do something you don't want to do, then later regret it afterwards." He continued and I nodded.

"So…" He began and trailed off.

"So…" I said in reply, mimicking his tone.

"What do you think?"

"About?"

"You… you know."

"Oh. _Oh_… that. Yeah. I think it was… it was amazing. Exactly what I expected it to be." I said and he nodded.

"For me, it was perfect. Passionately perfect." I sighed in contentment at his words. Comfortable silence settled between us. He started playing with my hair.

"So, about Santana…" he began, effectively breaking the silence.

"I've made my decision." I confidently reply and I don't really know why.

"And that is…?"

"I'm telling her. After school today, I'm telling her and I'm not going to wait for any more opportunities because I just… I just know and I'm sure of it that today is the day."

"You sound so sure of what you're going to do."

"I'm sure. I've kept this from her for so long, it's time I let her know about it. Before it's all too late… or before she finds out from someone else."

"I'm proud of you."

"Thanks, but just so you know, I'm only doing this on one condition."

"Yeah?"

"Will you be there for me when I tell her? For support and all? The aftermath, I guess?"

"Done. I'll be there for you. And trust me, there's nowhere else I'd rather be."

"Thank you!" I squealed and gave him a hug. He chuckled in reply and patted my back. When we pulled away, he said something I wasn't really expecting him to say.

"I love you."

"What?" Did I hear correctly? Did THE Finn Hudson just tell me he loves me? What?!

"I mean… _**I think I love you**_."


	13. IMPORTANT:NOT A CHAPTER, BUT PLEASE READ

**NOT A CHAPTER, BUT PLEASE READ. IT'S IMPORTANT.**

**Authors' Note:**

**Rein: Hey guys. Yvonne and I are so very sorry for not updating in such a very long time. We've both been busy with college (for the most part of June and July) and in Yvonne's case, moving to a new house, so we didn't really have any time to update **_**Star-Crossed Lovers.**_

**Yvonne: And then we both comforted each other when we saw news upon news of Cory's death. Actually, when we found out about the devastating news, Rein and I weren't together at the time.**

**Rein: I was actually with my mom and she told me the news about Cory. At first, I couldn't believe it. But I googled "Cory Monteith" and there those news were. :( So I called my BFF and told her I'll come to her house later so that we can comfort each other through this difficult time.**

**Yvonne: Rein held me when I cried, and I did the same thing for her. Up to now, we still can't believe it. :(**

**Rein and Yvonne: Rein and I are kinda late, but we need to say a few things. Cory's our idol. He inspired us in so many ways, so many ways we can't keep count. It's sad that we never got to meet him. But we know that he'll always be in our hearts, so we know we'll both be okay. For us, Cory didn't really die. We know he took the midnight train going anywhere. :') He's in a happy place now and we both know that he's looking down upon all of us Gleeks, his family, his Glee family, and of course, his Lea. Stay strong, Gleeks. Stay strong, Glee family. Stay strong Lea and Cory's family. Our thoughts and prayers are with you guys.**

**Cory, take it easy big guy. We love you and we miss you so much. You'll be in our hearts forever.**

**RIP Cory Monteith (aka Finn Hudson)  
May 11, 1982-July 13, 2013**

**(We're planning to dedicate a chapter to Cory, so stay tuned. We'll continue to write **_**Star-Crossed Lovers**_** since we both now have free times. Thank you for the continued support to those readers who still continue to read, review, favorite, and follow our story. :) You guys inspire us.)**


	14. Heartfelt Promises

**Twelve**

"You… you _think_ you love me?" I ask him, still not believing what I just heard and I needed to make sure. He nodded and honestly, for the first time ever, I didn't know what to say. I mean, sure, and I'm not going to deny it, my feelings for Finn were definitely there. It's just… I wasn't expecting him to say what he just said to me; it seemed rushed.

Well yeah, it was rushed, but the way he said it was so… was so sweet. It seemed right, but it seemed wrong at the same time.

He was looking at me with this strong intensity in his eyes. "Rachel?" I guess he was waiting for me to say something, but it seemed like my mouth was sealed shut and I couldn't come up with any words to say back to him.

Finally, I settled on: "I think I love you too. But…"

"I honestly don't like the sound of that 'but'…" he interrupted me.

"Please, just let me finish, okay?" I plead, sounding vulnerable. He nods, allowing me to continue.

"But I also think that we need to figure this out separately, you know? Figure out if this is really what we want. I need some time to figure this out on my own and I'm you need some alone time, too." I finished and looked up at him, gauging his reaction.

I was hoping for the negative, but Finn proved me wrong as he smiled his dopey grin at me and said, "Deal. I respect that. Take all the time you need, Rachel. No pressure."

"We're not even a couple yet, yet you make it so easy to love you already." I said and he blushed, flattered at my words.

"Thanks, I guess?" He teased and I faux rolled my eyes at him.

"I was being serious." I clarified and he nodded, chuckling.

"Thanks Finn. For being, you know, gentlemanly and patient and understanding." I say and he nodded, smiling.

"No problem, Rachel. I'll wait for you for as long as I can." He promises.

"Promise?"

"I promise."

And with that, I gave Finn a hug and he gave me a peck on the cheek.

**A/N: So sorry this was short, but I'll have you guys know that there's more to come. :) Next chapters features the return of Brittana! -Rein**


	15. All Out in the Open

**A/N: This is it! The BIG Rachel/Santana chapter! :) There's also some cute Finchel moments here for Finchel shippers. Hope you guys like! This chapter is co-written with my bestie who I love with all my heart.**

**Thirteen**

Finn and I spent the majority of Friday afternoon at his condo. We played games like Tekken 6 (his favorite action game of all action games), Sing It: Karaoke (my favorite game), and Zombie Wars, which I actually beat him at since I'm _that_ good at it, and of course, the classic 20 Questions and Two Truths and a Lie, which enabled us to get to know each other better. We had so much fun and I really enjoyed his company.

After that, we had lunch, which he prepared for us. The chow, which was consisted of fish fingers with chips, and veggie burgers, were delicious. I complimented his cooking after we were done washing the dishes and he said that he was glad that I liked it. Afterwards, we settled on the couch to relax and I made a quick call to Santana, asking her to meet me at the Lima Bean after school.

"Listen Finn, maybe you should just go wait in the car, while I talk to Santana, alone." I mumbled and he stares at me, confused. "What? But I thought the plan was…"

I interrupted him before he could continue. "Yeah, I know, but this is something I have to do on my own. If we both go in and talk to her, she'll think something's up." He caresses my hand and kisses it.

"Are you sure?" He asks me, concern laden in his voice. I nodded. "I'm sure Finn."

He tells me, "Well, I'll be in my limo waiting for you."

"Thank you, Finn."

"You're welcome, Rach."

I catch him staring at my lips and I grinned. "You know you can kiss me if you want to."

He chuckled, before, "I want to."

He crashed his lips to mine and that officially began our make-out session number two.

It felt good being here with him. It allowed me to forget about my problems, even just for a little while.

xxxxx

I walked into the double doors of the Lima Bean coffeehouse, ordered a nonfat mocha latte, and settled into a comfy booth to wait for my Latina friend—_and_ half-sister. I checked my watch, it was already 5:30 and we agreed to meet at 5:15, which got me thinking: where the hell is she?

I mean, this is Santana we're talking about, and this girl is never late for anything.

I'm nervous as nervous can be, but I'm trying hard not to let it show. 5 minutes later, said Latina _finally_ walked into the coffeehouse. She ordered jasmine green tea before finally making her way over to me.

"I'm sorry, sorry I'm late, Rach! Cheerios practice was draining, Glee ran late and Girl Chang kept stepping on my foot during one of the group performances. Oh, Coach Sue and Mr. Schue asked why you weren't at school today and I covered for you. I also covered for your mom, by the way. I'm gonna tell ya, it wasn't easy, but well, you owe me." Santana let out in one breath. I guess I'm really rubbing off on her.

"Yeah its fine, its fine; don't worry about it." I began. "I asked you here because I have something important to tell you." I paused to take a sip of my latte.

Santana was looking at me, waiting for me to continue. She sipped her green tea slowly and said, "Yeah, go on."

"But first, you have to promise me that whatever I say to you won't change our friendship."

"I promise, Rach. Nothing you could ever say or do could affect our friendship-you should know that by now."

Before I could reply, I took long gulps of my latte. She was watching me with a curious and somewhat amused expression on her face. "This is different, San. Don't be so quick to agree. Whatever I say or do today will result in you hating me and I just know that it will change everything."

"Nothing's going to change. Everything's going to be the same, Rach." Santana assures me, but I didn't have anything in my willpower to make myself believe her. She chugs down her green tea. "And I could never hate you."

"You don't know that." I argued.

Santana pleads, "Please just tell me what's bothering you, coz you're kind of freaking me out a little bit."

There must be a distressed expression on my face, because Santana grabbed my hand and she held it tight. "What is it? Just tell me. Please. You're scaring me."

I sighed, knowing I didn't have any way out of this tragedy.

"Here's what's up. You're…" I paused, unsure of how to continue.

"I'm…" she encouraged me.

Here goes nothing. "You're my sister." Santana's jaw dropped, but was too shocked to say anything.

"Actually, you're my half-sister." I continued. She released her hold on my hand.

"What the… Rach, is this some kind of a sick joke? Coz it fucking isn't funny at all!" Santana yelled. Not the reaction I was expecting from her, but well, meh.

I had to defend myself, so I yelled back, "What?! No! Did you really think I was going to joke about something so serious as this? It's not a freaking joke! Not everything should be taken as a joke to you, Santana! I'm telling you the truth!"

Santana shakes her head furiously and then gives me a fierce look. "I don't believe you, pretty little liar. If you're trying to play me, then consider me played. It's not funny, Rachel! Fuck you! I can't believe you would do this to me!" She stands up to leave, almost walks away from our table, but she stood frozen, since she heard me yell back:

"Well fuck you too, Santana!"

People were starting to stare at us now. Some were shooting us shocked looks, some judgmental; well if they only knew what's going on, maybe they'd understand.

San turns around, faces me, and says, "What the fuck? Did you just say the F-word back to me?"

I retorted, the sarcasm dripping in my voice, "Yeah I did, in case you were deaf. But don't worry, I'll repeat it for you. Fuck you too, Santana! There! I said it! Happy now?"

Santana, hurt by my words, just says dejectedly, "Honestly, I hate fighting with you the most Rachel, and I can't do this right now." She tries another attempt at leaving, but I won't let her.

"San, please, I'm sorry. Please, don't leave. Please stay and just listen to me, because there's more to the story. There's so much you don't know. Please, just stay." I hate how broken I sounded, but I don't really care.

I can see Santana contemplating this for a moment. Then, she releases yoga fire breaths and says, "Look, I can't do this right now. I can't believe you of all people have the nerve to do something like this to me, Rachel. We were supposed to be best friends."

"We are! We're still best friends, San! You promised nothing's going to change, you promised! Please just stay and hear me out." I plead, wishing for her to stay.

"Well… best friends don't do something like that to their best friends." Santana reasoned out.

"You really thought I'm lying to you, huh? When have I ever lied to you?"

Santana sighed. "I can't do this right now. I'm leaving. Take care, Rachel. See you around." She steals one last glance at me, before finally walking out of the coffeehouse.

That was all it took for the tears to spill out from my eyes. They overflowed like waterfalls on my cheeks.

xxxxx

On the car ride on the way to my house, Finn held me in his arms as I sobbed to him regarding about what happened earlier. "S-she hates me."

"Santana doesn't hate you. She just needs some time." Finn reassures me.

"Time? Finn, she didn't even b-believe me! What t-time are you talking about?" I snapped, whilst still continuing to sob in his arms.

I took a shaky breath and say, "I-I've l-lost e-e-everything."

"No, don't say that. Remember, you still have me." He says and he held me closer to him.

I sobbed even harder. "Ssshh, it's going to be okay, everything's going to be okay."

I wasn't in the mood to say anything else, so I just chose to believe him.

xxxxx

Saturday. Sunday. Monday. Tuesday. Four days. Four days went by without any communication at all. Well, if you count slight waves and "hi's" and "hellos" as communication, then good for ya.

I was being sarcastic.

Anyways, no communication really wasn't easy to achieve since we were both at school, but in Santana's case, she's an expert at pretending someone doesn't exist in her life so it was easy for her to avoid me.

Things wouldn't change between us, yeah right. That's different now.

Santana and I stopped all methods of communication. Our communication started to disperse and quite frankly, both of us are okay with it. We even stopped calling or texting each other. We even stopped tweeting and Facebook messaging. Brittany didn't really help our case since she's always planning for us to hang out, eat lunch together, etc.

But San and I would always say we're busy or something, even though we both know we don't really have any plans.

Everything changed on Wednesday, supposedly the fifth day of our no interactions rule. Thing. Whatever. Anyways, I was peacefully eating my lunch in the cafeteria when I noticed Brittany _**and**_ Santana making their way over to me. Great.

"Hi Rachie!" Brittany greeted me in her usual chipper tone. God, why was she always so happy?

"Hey Britt." I greeted her and plastered a fake-smile to my face.

"Rachel, hey." Santana greeted me, not meeting my eyes.

"San." I greeted back, in a monotone.

Brittany clapped her hands. "Okay, my work here is done! I'll leave you two alone now."

"Wait, what?!" Santana and I said at the same time.

Brittany started rambling, "Look, all I want is for you guys to talk and make peace with each other. I feel like such a sad unicorn seeing you guys avoiding each other. Please just try and talk, for me, okay? The Unholy Trinity hasn't been the same ever since you guys had this rift."

"Uh, I don't know Britt…" I began, at the same time Santana said, "If this is some kind of genius plan, B…"

Brittany sighed. "Just… for the love of rainbows and unicorns, just try, okay? Please?"

"Fine," we both reply in unison and she flashed us her trademark Brittany smile.

"Okay, I'm gonna go now! Bye!" And just like that, Brittany's gone.

Santana took a seat beside me and said, "So…"

I said back, not really in the mood to start a conversation, "So…"

Santana officially started the awkward conversation by saying, "Listen Rach, I know I've been a total jerk lately."

I rolled my eyes and sarcastically said, "Gee, ya think?" Then I added, "Try _asshole_. Yup, that's more like it."

Santana tried again. "I know you're mad at me."

"I'm not mad." I flat-out lied, but I can tell she saw right through it.

Santana lets out a nervous chuckle, "Rach, please, I'm trying really hard here. I'm trying to apologize to you. What do you want from me? Name it and it'll be done."

I huffed, "Don't make promises you can't keep, Santana."

"What is _that_ supposed to mean?"

"It's nothing, never mind. Anyway, do you even know what you're apologizing for?"

"I'm apologizing for not believing you, for not giving you a chance to explain, and most important of all, for shutting you out and pushing you away."

I can tell she's really sorry about all those hurtful things she said to me, but if she thinks that this is going to be easy and that I can just forgive and forget, well, she's wrong.

"That's not enough."

"What else do I have to apologize for?"

"You basically thought I was a "pretty little liar" and that I lied to you. You _really_ know me now, San. You now know the real me."

I heard her sigh, before replying, "I'm so sorry Rachel, I really am. But just know that I still love you as my best friend and I still see you like my best friend, so why can't you treat me like one?"

I'm pissed. How can she ask that of me? Is she really hoping for me to just forgive and forget? Yeah, right. "You've upset me, Santana! You have no right to ask that of me!"

Santana was silent and her head was down.

I took that as my cue and continued, "You know, when you've made your choice to not believe me, well, it broke my heart. But even though you broke my heart and said some really hurtful things, I can't stop myself from imagining not having you in my life."

Santana's body shook and she started crying. It was weird; just like me, she never really cries. My heart softened at the sight. "San…" I lightly touch her hand, expecting her to pull away, but she grabbed it and gave it a little squeeze.

"I-I'm just… I'm scared, okay? I don't want to lose you, Rach."

Her words made me tear up, but I quickly wiped the tears with my other hand. I enveloped her in a hug.

"Hey, hey, ssshh, ssshh, it's okay San. I'm here, I'm not going anywhere. You're not going to lose me. We're still best friends and I still care about you." I rubbed small circles on her back, in an attempt to comfort her.

"Does that mean you forgive me?"

Forgive I can do for now, but forget? It'll take me some time.

"Yes, I forgive you." I pause, and then add, "I'm sorry too for all those things I said last Friday. I'm sorry San."

She just nodded against my chest and I was about to pull away from the hug, when I heard her, "Please no, don't let me go."

So I didn't.

But when we finally pulled away from the hug, Santana told me about a request that I couldn't refuse. "I'm ready, Rach. I've had four days to think, but now I'm ready. I'm ready to listen to you. Tell me everything. Tell me the whole story."

"Okay. Well, first things first, my mom told me to keep this a secret from you, from Puck, and from Marley. I've known about this since I was 13 years old."

Santana gasped. "You've known for about 4 years!" I nodded and then she encouraged me to continue.

"Here's the summarized version of the story since I've been rehearsing this in my head for a few years now: My mom, Shelby, your mom Maribel, and your dad, well, our dad Carlos, have known each other since birth. Yes, I'm not kidding. Carlos and Shelby fell in love their freshman year in high school and straight after graduating college, they got married. But your mom has always had this attraction to our dad, so they had an affair in March of '94, but my mom didn't know about the affair till later. Then the following month, our dad made love to my mom. And we were the result. You were born first, on the 17th of November 1994 and I was born next, a month and a few days apart, on the 18th of December. Shortly after Puck and Marley were born, Carlos told Shelby the truth and they divorced. When we were 5 years old, I met you for the first time. We became insta-friends along with Brittany. We're inseparable. Then, when I turned 13, my Mom made me promise to keep this a secret from you, but now, well what she doesn't know is that it's all out in the open."

All Santana could say was, "Wow. So… my mom raised me on her own." I shrugged. "But, what happened to our dad?" She continued.

"Well, all my mom told me was that he was in New York, with his new family." I state sadly.

"God, I hate him already. I've never had the chance to get to know him, but he sounds like such a player, a womanizer and I think he's disgusting."

"True that."

We hugged each other again.

"So what's going to happen to us now, sis?" Santana says the word for the first time and I just got this warm feeling inside of me.

"I don't know sis, but we'll figure it out. Together." I promised.

"Pinkie swear?" She held out her pinkie and without another word between us, I linked my pinkie onto hers.

"Everything's going to change, sis. But I know we'll be okay, because we have each other to lean on." Santana assured me.

Truer words have never been spoken.

Until now.

"I love you sis." I said and Santana replied almost instantly, "I love you too, baby sis."

**A/N: Awww! Cutest Pezberry scene ever! :) The truth is finally out in the open and everything's okay again. What do you guys think about this chapter? Tell us what you think, it always inspires us when we read your comments and feedbacks. Next chapter will feature a time jump to… prom! Stay tuned!**

**Shoutouts to ****noro****, ****finchelromionelover****, and ****FinchelFan728**** for their continued support, you guys rock! :)**


	16. A Very Special Prom Night

**Fourteen**

My mother told me that it is VERY important for a girl to look her best at her junior/senior promenade. And she turned out to be true. For reasons I can't explain exactly why. But you get what I mean.

So I spent mine—the day of the prom—getting ready with my girls. At the mall's local beauty salon, we had our manicures and pedicures done, our hairs all styled differently—my hair has some light brown streaks _**and**_ I got it straightened for the event, Santana had her brunette locks in curls, and Brittany had her hair up and clipped with a barrette—and last but not the least, we also had a waxing job done (_ouch_).

Thankfully, I wasn't followed or hounded by reporters because of the Finn Hudson thingy—you know _exactly_ what I mean, right?—not that I have been hounded before, but, well, I just have a feeling that something like that will happen tonight.

But I'm not going to think about that right now.

After our trip to the mall, we eat an early, but heavy dinner at Breadstix then we continue getting ready at my house. When I'd slipped into my dress—a pink satiny dress, with chiffon all over it, from the sleeves and all around the hem; really, I love it, it was the girliest dress you ever saw, seen, whatever—I felt like I actually looked my best.

And I did. And so did Santana and Brittany. They looked amazing and their dresses were gorgeous—Brittany's lavender dress complimented her blue eyes and Santana has on a sexy red dress that seemed to really show off her curves; the corsages they wore complemented their outfits; their shoes were, you know, those shoes with three or four inch heels; and their makeup were both done elegantly, yet simple at the same time—both of my girls were a sight to behold. They looked absolutely stunning.

We were all checking each other out, until Santana frowned at me. "What?" I said.

"Don't get me wrong, Rach. You look beautiful, your dress looks really girlish and pretty and all, your makeup's lovely, and your shoes are to die for—" Santana said.

"But?" I questioned.

"—but there's a little something missing on you. Where's your corsage?"

I replied, "Oh um, my corsage? It's actually with my date. I guess."

"You _guess_?" Brittany asked.

"Uh huh."

Santana raised her eyebrows up at me. "Why are you blushing, then?"

"What? I'm not blushing!" I lied, but I am in fact, blushing. God, what is up with me?

"You totes are! Oh come on, Rachel, you're a bad liar and we all know it." Santana said and turned to face Brittany, "Britt, why is _she_ blushing?" Brittany just shrugged. But both of them were still looking at me, perhaps demanding an explanation.

I couldn't take it anymore, so I finally gave in. "Okay, fine. I'm blushing because I have a date for the prom and he's super, super cute. Not to mention super popular."

Santana looked at me, giving me a confused look. "But I thought we were all going with Finn as his _dates_… wait." She stayed silent for a few minutes, processing this, and when she finally got it, she shrieked, "Oh my God! Is Finn the one you're talking about? The one who's super, super cute and super popular? Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, is he _the_ one?"

Leave it to Santana to find out about that little secret of mine. Like I said before, she's really smart and her psychic Mexican third eye is never wrong.

"Yes," came my answer and they both screamed.

"You lucky bitch," Santana said at the same time Brittany said, "You go, girlfriend!"

"You know Rachie, if you wanted him all to yourself, you could've just said so. I mean, it's not too late to change dates, right?" Brittany said.

"No! Um, it's not like that, B. It's not that big of a deal anyway. Finn and I are just friends." I explained.

"Friends. Yeah, right. Friends." Santana said, with a laugh.

I gave her a defiant stare as I said, "Sis, don't tease." A brilliant idea came to me and I flashed my sister a wicked smile. Two can play at this game, right? And Santana wanted to play. So I'll play. "Plus San, you're one to talk. Don't knock it till you've tried it."

Santana and Brittany shot me confused stares.

"Huh?" Brittany asked.

"What are you talking about, sis?" Santana wanted to know.

Before I could even reply, I heard Mom call out, "Girls? Limo's here!"

"Saved by the bell, but whatever sis. We—" Santana gestured to me and her, "—are not done talking about this." I sighed, but nodded.

xxxxx

We went downstairs, traipsed into the living room in our gorgeous dresses, and my mom gave the three of us compliments and made us pose for her for some pictures, before we finally made our way outside.

No photographers, paps, and reporters were in sight like I expected, thank God, so I guess we were safe. For now, anyway.

Finn emerged from his limo, carrying a clear plastic box, inside of which lay a corsage made of a bunch of carnations. He walked up to me, gave me a kiss on the cheek, and said, "This is for you." He retrieved the corsage and pinned it on me, just like I instructed him to.

"Thanks Finn. It's lovely," I said, admiring the corsage he gave me, and he gave me one of his trademark dopey grins in return.

"Not as lovely as you," he said back and for the second time that night, I blushed.

My mom coughed, breaking our little moment.

Finn walked straight up to my mom and stuck his right hand out. "Mrs. Berry, mam," he said, "I'm Finn Hudson. I'm here to take your daughter to her junior-senior prom."

My mom looked like she didn't quite know what to do. Finally, she took Finn's outstretched hand and shook it. "Pleased to meet you. I'm Shelby Berry, but please, call me Shelby." Then she added, "And it's Ms. Not Mrs."

Finn nodded. "Likewise." He paused then added, "I guarantee you, Ms. Berry, erm, Shelby, that your daughter will have the time of her life tonight with her friends. And I swear I'll have her home by midnight."

"Right. You kids have fun!" My mom said and San and Britt waved goodbye at her and then they climbed into the limo, leaving Finn and I with mom.

"I'll call you mom, if I'm going to be later than that. Or if there are any after-parties whatsoever." I said, kissed my mom on the cheek, and grabbed Finn by the arm. "Bye mom. Don't wait up!"

We were the last ones to climb into Finn's limo, before I heard Mom call out, "Wait! We didn't get a picture!" But it was too late since before we all knew it, we were headed off to the dance.

xxxxx

When we finally arrived, the place was hopping. The music was loud, and there were balloons and confetti everywhere. Santana whispered to me, "We'll meet you guys inside." And just like that, Britt and San were gone.

"Shall we dance?" Finn asked me. I said yes. And with this, I took Finn's arm, and the two of us glided into the entrance of the gym, but—the entire student body, some of the faculty, and the ones I feared the most, the reporters and paps—crowded around us for a chance to see their favorite star and his date for the evening. There were flashes going off all around us. Great. I could just see the headline the next day:

SMALL TOWN GIRL AND BIG-TIME HEARTHROB GO PUBLIC WITH THEIR SECRET RELATIONSHIP

And then came the flurry of questions:

"Ms. Rachel Berry! What's the truth about your relationship with Finn Hudson? Are you two in love?"

"Rachel Berry, was it hard keeping Finn Hudson's identity a secret?"

"Are you going to join Mr. Hudson in LA a week from now?"

"Mr. Hudson, are you going steady with Ms. Berry?"

Then:

"Don't answer them, don't answer any of them." Huh? That certainly didn't come from the reporters.

I didn't have to look up to see that it was Finn who spoke. I just nodded.

After a few more agonizing minutes, we finally made it safely inside the gym.

"How bizarre was that?" Finn asked me and I just shrugged in reply. Truthfully, I didn't know.

Without any more words between us, we started slow dancing to the music that was currently being sung by the Glee club that I don't really know what the title of the song is. Santana and Brittany spotted us, and Santana mouthed _finally_, and I mouthed back that _I'll explain later_. She nodded.

Finn twirled me around and the next thing I knew, we were waltzing around the room. Even though he only stepped on my foot once, he was actually a pretty terrific dancer.

Sam Evans, Tina, Mercedes, and Mike Chang performed a very upbeat, pop version of We Found Love (In a Hopeless Place). Perfect.

_Yellow diamonds in the light  
Now we're standing side by side  
As your shadow crosses mine  
What it takes to come alive_

_Shine a light through an open door  
Love and life I will divide  
Turn away 'cause I need you more  
Feel the heartbeat in my mind_

_It's the way I'm feeling I just can't deny  
But I've gotta let it go_

I don't know what Finn was thinking about as he held me close during one of our slow dances together. Maybe he was thinking the same thoughts as I was: you know this whole thing between us, _**and**_ if we're really romantically interested in each other.

_We found love in a hopeless place  
We found love in a hopeless place  
We found love in a hopeless place  
We found love in a hopeless place…_

xxxxx

After an hour or two, we finally found a quiet place to sit and talk. Well actually, he was getting me a drink, so I was all alone in a couch on a booth. With curtains. For privacy. But, not for long since Santana joined me.

"Hey Rach, having fun?" She wanted to know.

"Yeah, how 'bout you?" I questioned back.

"Yeah, I'm having a good time." Santana paused, then added, "So, what did you mean by what you said earlier? You know, the "don't knock it till you've tried it thing?""

"Oh um… I just assumed that um, that you like Brittany. That you like like Brittany."

Santana's eyes widened at my words. "How…how did you…" She trailed off, unable to continue.

"I can see the way you look at her, San. I don't see you looking at Finn or any other guy like _that_. Your eyes shine with love in them when you look at Brittany, and only Brittany. I don't see you looking at other guys like that." I said and she nodded.

"I just realized this a few days ago. That I'm not bisexual of any sort, I'm a lesbian. I guess I'm in lesbians with Brittany," Santana said and giggled at what she just said. And I giggled with her.

I grab hold of her right hand and say, "Look San. It doesn't matter to me what you are. Girl or lesbian, whatever, it doesn't really matter to me. Just be you, be true to yourself, because that's good enough for me and I love you, and I'm not only saying this just coz you're my sister, but I'm saying it because I just want you to be happy. And if achieving that happiness is with Britt, then go for it."

And with that, she gives me a hug. "Thanks sis. I love you, too." And in that moment, I realized I didn't have to say it back, because she knows, she already knows that I love her so much.

Santana was the first to pull away from the hug. She wastes no time in questioning me. "So, what's going on with you and Finn?"

"Well, what I know is that, this, whatever this thing is with Finn, I know it's heading somewhere. I mean, he already admitted he likes me and that I also admitted I like him back—" I suddenly blurt out. Oh no. Oh God, no.

And… she screamed.

"Oh my God! When did this happen?! Damn girl, you sure can keep a secret!"

"Our confessions happened at his condo and yes, I can keep a secret."

"Oh no. What else are you hiding from us?"

Oh God. Santana's worse than those reporters outside.

"What makes you think I'm hiding something else?"

"Girl, that blush and that smile kind of gives you away."

"Fine. Finn and I kissed." Santana's eyes widened. "No, we didn't just kiss. We made out. Twice." I corrected myself.

She screamed again. "OHMYGOD, OHMYGOD, OHMYGOD! YOU LUCKY BITCH! And here I thought you didn't really like him like _that_!"

"And here I thought you were a lesbian." I pointed out.

She continued, "Yeah, but still… YOU MADE OUT WITH ONE FINN HUDSON! I'm still a fan of him of course, but I don't really like him _that_ way anymore… OMG! That explains why Finn only has eyes for you! Did something happen yet? Did you guys… _you know_?"

"No!" I shout, "Santana, keep your voice down!"

But she didn't. And she didn't stop babbling, all right. "OMG, and what about all those reporters outside? You and Finn, arm in arm, heading to a school dance together, is guaranteed to spark up some rumors. Oh my God, I'm actually jealous of you. You've turned into a celebrity overnight! It's actually really awesome!"

"Santana!" I shouted, as if giving her a warning. "I told you, Finn and I are just…"

Santana interrupted, "Oh my God, I get the picture mi estrella. No need to further elaborate."

I tried to convince her again. "Believe what you wanna believe San, like I said before and I'm not hesitating to say it again, Finn _**and**_ I are JUST FRIENDS."

She shoots me a disbelieving look. "Friends. Yeah, right. Friends." Santana says for the second time this night. She adds, "You're not fooling anyone, Rach. The way I look at Brittany, is also the way I see you looking at Finn. Stop denying it. Just do us all a favor and admit it to the world so that everyone could live happily ever after."

I shot her a glare. "Why are you doing this? Why are you pushing me to do this?"

She grabs my right hand, "Because I just want you to be happy."

I gave her a smile in return. "Okay, I will tell him. On one condition."

"Yeah? Name it." Santana promises.

"I will tell him, if AND only if you also tell Brittany."

"I'll try, but I'm not making any promises Rach."

"That's good enough for me." And with that, this time, I give her a hug.

"Is everything okay?" Someone asked, choosing to break our little moment and that made us separate from the hug. Finn stepped inside and sat beside me again, his arms all around my shoulders.

"Great," I said and accompanied it with a smile in Santana's direction. She smiled back.

"Everything's just fine, Finn. Oh, I better go now. Brittany's probably looking for me." Santana said and stood up to leave. But before she could do such thing, she turned to Finn and said, or rather, threatened, "If you hurt her, I will ruin you and I will kick your ass." I can't help myself from laughing at that one. Santana laughs along with me and afterwards, she patted Finn's back. "Congrats bro."

Finn gulped, but nodded. With a wave, Santana left, closed the curtains, and finally, we were at peace again.

xxxxx

"So, what took you so long?" I asked.

"I just signed a few autographs." He tells me and hands me a punch. I thank him and instantly went for the punch since I'm parched.

"How many did you sign?" I asked again.

"Oh, just the entire student body." My eyes widened.

"And you call that a _few_?"

In response, he just smiled his dopey grin at me that I'm quickly learning to love.

"So, what happened between you and Santana?" He inquired.

"Oh nothing. We just had… a moment." I said and tried my best to hold back my giggle.

I then add, "We better go back out there. They're announcing the king and queen soon."

"Nah, let's just stay here. I wanna be alone with you, if that's okay." He says.

"We're missing the party, but… okay, let's stay here." I say and snuggle closer to him.

Outside, we heard someone tapping on the microphone that was onstage.

"Testing." A raspy voice said. "Testing. 1. 2. 3." It turned out to be Mr. Figgins.

"Let me ask you a question." Finn said, reaching out to take my hand. "And I want you to answer me honestly, okay? I want to know what you think about this."

I nodded, but didn't say anything as I felt my stomach do somersaults—the good kind—because at this time, Finn Hudson IS holding my hand.

"Hello everyone and welcome to McKinley High School's annual junior-senior prom," Mr. Figgins began.

"Shoot." I finally managed to say something back to Finn and he nodded.

"Okay. Let's say there was this guy. And, and he happened to be in love with this girl—"

O-kay. This sounds a little familiar. I've heard of plots like this before. Well, not in real life. Just in the movies.

"The time has come for us to name our new Prom King and Prom Queen. The votes have already been tallied, so let's get right down to it." Mr. Figgins continued.

"—and let's say that for some reason, said girl decided to break up with him," Finn went on. "How long do you think he'd have to wait before he could move on to…someone else? And not be accused of being on the rebound?"

Like I said before, this sounds… I don't know, a little familiar, I guess?

"I… I don't know." I said. Truthfully, I don't know. What was Finn talking about? _Who_ was he talking about? Who had been dumped by a girl lately? No one I knew that's for sure. But… who was it?

"As you know, there was a table set up in the cafeteria all week, where you could write in your votes for the king and queen. Well, those votes have been tallied, and I'm happy to say we have our winners!" Mr. F droned on, happily.

"Not winners." I hear Ms. Pillsbury say, interrupting Mr. Figgins hastily. "_**Everyone**_ here is a winner. What Mr. Figgins meant to say is that we have our Prom King and Queen."

"Right. Yes, that's what I meant." Mr. Figgins said. "As you may know, we have Sam Evans, Mike Chang, and Blaine Anderson up for the title of prom King and we have Santana Lopez, Brittany Pierce, and Rachel Berry battling it out for the sole title of prom Queen. And, drum roll please…" He paused for a bit, then continued, "Oh. Well, this is a bit unusual. One of the nominees of the prom court, isn't exactly, er, doesn't exactly go to McKinley High…"

"You know what, Finn?" I said to him, finally coming up with an honest and straightforward answer, "I think the guy should wait. I think he should wait a really, really long time. Because, you know, he wouldn't want to rush into anything. The right girl might be right around the corner, you know. Or maybe she's even closer than he thinks. And I also think he should wait until he's _totally sure_ he's found her…"

"That's what I was hoping you'd say," Finn said and before I knew it, he dropped my hand and kissed me. On the lips. And then I was being pushed onto the couch.

Oh. OH. I know exactly what the hell is going on. It all makes sense now. The guy Finn was talking about was actually him and the girl he was in love with that dumped him like yesterday's trash was Quinn and that someone else he wants… was me.

Oh. My. God.

I deepened the kiss, made it more passionate, trying to make him understand that I now get what he was saying earlier. Finn didn't stop kissing me, even after we heard Mr. Figgins saying into the mike, "Oh, well. I'd be proud to call him an honorary McKinley Titan. This year's McKinley High Prom king and queen are… and drum roll please… _Finn Hudson and Rachel Berry_!"

xxxxx

"It's just," Finn said as we shared our first dance as king and queen—a spotlight dance, in other words, after our coronation ceremony— "I was so sure after Quinn dumped me that I'd never love again. And then I met you, and… I don't know. It wasn't love at first sight or anything. It just… happened, you know?"

Right.

"You're not like other girls and you're much more different than Quinn, Rach." He went on, "It's just that you're so incredible. I can't even think of any other words to say."

At his words, my heart did some pretty serious turning over in my chest. And suddenly, I felt like I couldn't breathe.

"You know when I first met you, and this is true, I couldn't ever get you out of my head," Finn rambled on, "Really. All those days I've spent with you made me realize that you're the one I wanted to be with, and that Quinn and I… we just weren't right for each other and I've gotta accept that and move on. I guess what I'm trying to say here is, and I know this is too soon for me to be saying this, but… I love you, okay? I love you and I can't see myself with anyone else, I can only see myself with you and only you."

Finn's hands were cupping my face now. And then… he was kissing me like he never wanted to stop. And I wasn't even imagining it because it totally felt real to me. He was kissing me, and I was kissing him back, but then I realized something that abruptly made me pull away.

"But you're leaving, Finn. After the prom, you're going back to LA. If you really want me, then—" I didn't get to finish as he interrupted me.

"What? Oh my God, I'm such an idiot. I forgot to tell you that… I'm staying. For another two weeks. Just so you know, I did it for you. I told my agent, my manager, and the rest of my crew that I have to stay here because I have something important to do and that was to tell you that I love you and that I want you to be my girlfriend. I had to do it, Rach. Because I know I'll probably never get another chance."

Now that got me talking. "Really? You did that for me? I don't know what to feel at this moment. Just know that I love you too and yes, I want to be your girlfriend. And please don't say that you'll probably never get another chance, Finn. Even if you're going to go back in LA, and I know you're going to go back there, but I know, I just know that we'll make this work. Long-distance relationships may be hard, but we'll make it work, I promise. I love you, Finn Hudson."

He smiled. "See? I told you you're different. You're just so positive, you know? One of the many things I admire about you. And yes, we'll make it work. I love you too, Rachel Berry."

With nothing more to say, Finn started kissing me again. And this time, I didn't stop him. We were both too head over heels in love with each other to even notice the world around us.

Finn abruptly pulled away from the kiss to say something. "You know what the other thing is? Why I came here, I mean?"

I looked up at him. "No."

"I wanted to see what this town had to offer. I guess now, I don't have to look any further because I've found her at last." He said.

I laughed at that one. I can't help it. "My, aren't you the smooth one?" I gave him a playful nudge.

"The smooth talker thingy just came naturally," Finn admitted, making me laugh again.

"Uh-huh. Finn, stop talking and just kiss me, will you?" I demanded and he did as he was told and once again, the world around us melted away.

_I'll stop the world and melt with you_

xxxxx

To think that I didn't even want to attend my own prom in the first place was now ridiculous to me. If I hadn't, then maybe I would never get to meet this guy who would change my life forever. But I did, in fact, attend the prom and had the most magical time ever, with my boyfriend and our friends. This night turned out to be one of the best and also one of the most special nights of my life and I will cherish it forever.

_**End of Part One.**_

**A/N: Yay, we've reached the end of part one! Yvonne and I are currently working on Part 2, so stay tuned you guys! And please do keep the support coming; it really inspires and motivates us! :)**

**So tell us… how was it?**


	17. A Very Special Sunday

**Author's Note:**

**Hey guys! :) So sorry for the long wait. I've been really busy with school and all, and plus there's this whole moving to a new country thing I have to think about. I also went through a major change in my life that I'd rather not talk about here. Anyways, enough about me; I really missed writing this story— you guys have no idea how much. So now, without further ado, here's part two for Star-Crossed Lovers and I hope you guys enjoy reading :) –Rein**

* * *

**Fifteen**

**Rachel's POV**

It has been weeks (or three weeks to be more specific) since that magical prom night. Three weeks since my life changed forever. Three weeks since Finn and I officially became a couple. I still find myself thinking back to that night, wherein, Finn and I had our private after-party. Okay not that kind of _after-party_, but you know what I mean.

* * *

_I had taken him upstairs to the roof deck of the school building for our much needed privacy. I remember him asking me what I wanted to do. I remember replying I wanted to dance with him and that I also wanted him to sing to me. I didn't think he'd be serious and actually do it, but he did it, surprising me._

_So there we were dancing, the both of us looking in each other's eyes with full of love in them and him singing Edwin McCain's "I'll Be" to me. The only words that really left an imprint on me were:_

_**I'll be your crying your shoulder  
I'll be love's suicide  
and I'll be better when I'm older  
I'll be the greatest, fan of your life…**_

_After we were done dancing, he gave me a little dip. (You know those things that couples do in the movies after they dance? Yeah, that's what I'm talking about.) And then he gave me a passionate kiss that really took my breath away._

_It was so romantic and sweet, no one could ruin our moment. In fact, even when the beautiful, colorful fireworks were set off in the night sky, we didn't break our kiss since we were so lost in our private and intimate moment._

* * *

"Rach?" a voice snapped me out of my reverie and that voice happens to be from someone I'm really head over heels in love with.

"Finn, hey, I'm sorry. I was just thinking…" I quickly reply. He sidled up to me and encircled his arms on my waist. I now instantly remembered where I was. I'm at Finn's condo. On a Sunday; well this is certainly a perfect Sunday for me, I'm contented just being here with him.

Well, truthfully, I've been visiting him every now and then ever since the prom and I'm really enjoying it. I enjoy being here with him; it already feels like home to me.

He simply asks, "About?"

"Just how magical my prom turned out to be—how it turned out to be even better than I expected it to be." I smile at that.

"How did it become magical?" Finn wanted to know.

I know where he's getting at, so I decided to play along. "Well, there was this guy that completely swept me off my feet and made me feel really special and loved and beautiful."

"Oh. Definitely sounds like I have a competition," He says and I laugh.

I look up to him and say, "Finn, there's no competition. I promise you. You're the only guy for me and you're the one I love." I held his hand tight in mine. "I love you, Finn."

He squeezed my hand. "I love you too, Rach." And then he kissed me, hard and I kissed him back with that same amount of fervor he had with his kisses.

* * *

A while later, when we were cuddling in his bedroom, he asked me the question I wasn't expecting him to ask just yet: "If we had a baby, what would you want to name him/her?"

I was shocked at the question, it was totally unexpected. "Um first, what brought this on Finn?"

"I just… look Rach, I know it's really early for me to say this, but these past few weeks, I saw my future. And you were in it. This never happened to me before with Quinn…"

I can't help but feel a little jealous when he brings up Quinn; it seems to me like he's still in love with her. I stiffened in his arms. "Do you still love her?"

He looks at me, the shock palpable in his eyes. "What? Why do you think that?"

"Just answer the question, Finn." I demanded.

"No, I'm not in love with her anymore. Okay?"

I nodded, but still not believing it a little bit. I shuffled away from him, breaking myself free from his arms.

"Rachel…" He touched my shoulder and I flinched a little. He moved closer to me. "Rach, what brought this on?"

"You just keep bringing _her_ up in our conversations and it makes me feel a little jealous. It seems to me like you're still in love with her." Finn didn't say anything in reply, so I rambled, "Look, I get that she's prettier than me judging from the pictures I've seen of her, she's taller, and she's hella gorgeous and more talented. And I know girls like me don't really get chosen over girls like her but I just want somebody to love me for…" I didn't get to finish as he silenced me with a kiss. I looked down and frowned. He sighed and tilted my chin up so that I was looking at him.

"Rach, would you stop for a moment? You're beautiful. You're very talented; anyone with eyes can see that. You're the best of the best at that school. You're gorgeous. And yes, you are tiny, but you're _**my**_ tiny. You're my tiny star and you're my tiny Jewish-American princess."

I can't help tearing up at his words. "You… you really think that much of me?"

He smiled. "More." Finn wiped my tears away with his pointer finger.

He gives me a hug. "I'm sorry for being insecure, Finn. It won't happen again. But still I…" Finn silenced me again, with a kiss on my lips.

"I *kiss* don't *kiss* love *kiss* Quinn *kiss* anymore. Okay? And I won't bring her up again, I promise." I just nodded against his chest and he kissed me on top of my head. "I want to make you feel loved and special and you know how I'm going to do that?" I give him a little shake of my head.

"I'm going to give you something that no one else has ever gotten, like ever before."

Wait… was he implying what I think he is implying? Was he implying wanting to sex me up? Wait what?!

"Finn it's… I'm not…" I stammered, unable to say what I really want to say.

"Don't freak out, Rach. I know you're not ready. It's okay." He says and adds, "I'm sorry for thinking what I was thinking. When you're ready, then we can figure it out. Okay?"

I proceeded to get lost in my thoughts. The moment seemed right, perfect even, so what is there for me to be scared of? Finn seemed like a really noble man and I know he wouldn't hurt me in any way possible. But the timing also seemed wrong on so many levels since we only started dating. I also remembered my promise to myself that I'm saving myself for marriage. But I can definitely see Finn in my future too, so…

"Okay." I say, confidently and that seemed to surprise him.

"Rachel, I don't… I don't want to pressure you into doing something you don't want to do. So I'm gonna ask you: are you sure? Because Rach, if we do this, it'll be too hard to stop." Finn warns me.

"I'm sure and yes I want to." Was all I said and then he started kissing my neck, my shoulders, and then finally, my lips. One thing led to another and… I guess you guys know what happened next.

* * *

**(A/N: I don't really write sex scenes since it makes me uncomfortable. I'm 21, I know that yes, but I really get uncomfortable writing sexual scenes—and it's not really my forte; I'd rather read it from somebody else's fanfiction. You guys are free to guess what really happened, though. Let your imaginations run wild. ;) –Rein)**

* * *

"Finn, I have a confession to make." I say, after we were done with what we just did. He holds me closer to him, the both of us fully naked under the sheets.

I went on, "I've never done this before, guess you could say you're my first time."

"You're my first too, Rach." He says and I let out tears of happiness and then I started attacking him with kisses, officially entering round two.

It was amazing, it was perfect, it did hurt yeah, but still…in that moment, Finn made me feel really special and loved and I couldn't ask for anything more. As the night progresses, I finally managed to answer his question.

"To answer your question earlier, that if we had a baby, well, I want twins and I would name them **Lea** for our baby girl and **Cory** for our little boy."

Finn smiled at my name suggestions and gave me another kiss, pulling me even closer to him in the bed. I slept in his arms that perfect Sunday night and I was so tired and contented I didn't even take notice that my phone was ringing.

* * *

**No One's POV**

Rachel has sixteen missed calls; ten from Shelby, three from Santana, one from Brittany, one from Marley, and finally, one from Puck. Uh-oh.

* * *

**A/N: So, how was the first chapter for part two? Like it? Hate it? Tell me what you think. Your feedback always helps. :) By the way, I just want to say that I'm not co-writing this story with my BFF anymore, Yvonne told me to just continue writing this and that she's going to start writing on her own. I'm proud of my girl. –Rein**

* * *

**What to expect in the coming chapters:**

**Finchel and Brittana double date;**

**Quinn coming into the picture and causing some trouble for our beloved Finchel;**

**Finn officially meeting Shelby, Puck, and Marley;**

**Rachel meeting Finn's mom, stepdad, and Kurt; and FINALLY**

**Something unexpected happens to Rachel that will change her life forever.**


	18. Awakening

**Sixteen**

I woke up early, at 5:30, the next morning. Without Finn knowing coz he turned out to be a really heavy sleeper. I quickly went to get ready for school, ate a couple bagels, and then I showered and freshened up. I ended up wearing one of his oversized t-shirts (which said Canucks; I don't know what that is supposed to mean) which I tucked into my dark-washed jeans, since I'm really tiny and if I didn't tuck it in, I would probably look like some hole swallowed me or something.

I grab my backpack and afterwards, I went over to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. I left him a note on his bedside table that said:

**Finn,**

**Thank you for the most amazing night ever. I'd truly cherish it forever. I love you.**

**-Rachel xxx**

**P.S. See you later, baby. ;)**

And then I left his condo, hailed a cab, and gave the driver the directions to WMHS.

Today was just another school day and I really wish Finn came to school with me today.


	19. My Very Own New Direction

**Seventeen**

When I got to school, I immediately went to Coach Sue's office.

"Coach Sylvester?" I began. I'm going to do something that could very well change the course of my high school career forever, but I gotta do it. I've thought about this for days, and I'm really sure of my decision.

"Berry," She says, finally noticing my presence, turns to me and motions for me to sit down on the chair in front of her desk. "What are you here for, Berry?"

"Coach Sue, this isn't an easy thing for me to say, but I'm just going to come and say it."

It's now or never, Rachel.

Coach Sue is watching me with this expectant look in her eyes and I took that as my cue.

I started rambling, "Being on the Cheerios has been great for me, Coach Sylvester. It has really upped my reputation. But these past few days, I didn't find it as exciting as it used to be. Being here has changed my persona, turned me into a mean girl, and you could say, a bitch and all that. And I didn't like being like that kind of girl one bit. I don't like who I've become. So what I'm trying to tell you here is that, I want to quit the Cheerios. Cheerleading is something that's not really for me, being on Broadway someday is, and I'm sorry if I wasted your time. I have to let you know this; I only joined as a joke. Santana and Brittany were the only ones supposed to try out, but I was a little jealous so I also tried out, and eventually got in, which I didn't really expect. Oh Coach, please say something." I let out a breath, panting from doing all the talking I did and waited for Coach Sue to say something.

I thought that she was going to start an argument judging from the way she's looking at me, but all she said was: "Are you sure this is really what you want, Rachel? Because if you are sure, then I will let you go there's no turning back."

"I'm sure, Coach Sue." I said and she nodded.

"Then I'm letting you go." She says, shocking the hell out of me.

"What?"

Coach Sue repeats, "I'm letting you go, Berry. You realized your dream of being on Broadway and for that I am proud of you. You have big dreams and I admire you for that. When you first joined the team, I knew you were something. You were someone I knew that would really work their best and hardest just to get out of this cow town you call Lima."

I giggled at that.

"It really was a pleasure having you on the team, Rachel. You have a bright future ahead of you; don't do anything that would hurdle you from your big dreams and aspirations."

"I won't do anything stupid, I promise. Thank you, Coach." I promised and then I gave her a huge trademark Berry hug. When I pulled away, she said, "I'm really going to miss having you on the team."

"I know, and I'm going to miss being on the team, too. I'm going to miss you the most, though."

Coach Sue gives me a smile, which turned into a smirk. "Enough of these sappy shits; get out of here before I change my mind." I laughed, because I missed seeing this side of her—I haven't seen it in a really long while.

In that moment, I realized: I took a step in a new direction.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for the short chapters, feeling a writer's block coming on… :( But most of my written chaps are to be posted soon, so don't fret :) -Rein**


	20. Suspicions

**Eighteen**

**Rachel's POV**

I walk into the Spanish classroom and immediately, I spotted Santana and she stops mid-sentence from whatever her conversation with Britt was about and looks up at me, glaring at me, which seemed like daggers in my eyes. Brittany just gives me a small smile.

Santana then starts scolding me, at breakneck speed. "Rachel, where the hell have you been? Do you know how worried I was? I was even more worried and I almost had a heart attack when your mom called me asking where you were and being the smartass I was, I told her you were at my house for a sleepover with me and Britt. Thankfully, she bought my lie and therefore, I saved your skinny ass again. How many times do you want me to save your ass? Huh? Rachel, don't just stare at me like that; didn't you know that it's rude to stare?! Answer my question; where the hell have you been?!"

I told her to calm down and that I have a good explanation for my whereabouts. I didn't manage to calm her down, but Brittany did. And when she's calmed down enough, I finally tell her where I spent the night.

But of course, I left out that part of me and Finn hooking up.

* * *

"So… you guys cuddled and watched movies and sang karaoke?" Santana asks me after I was done with my story. I just nodded and tried my best to hide the smile that is threatening to creep out of my lips.

"You guys did all that and nothing sexual happened?"

"Nothing, I told you, nothing like that happened." I said and added, "Now that you know, can we just leave it at that?" There was a slight edge to my voice as I said that.

Brittany noticed it. "Whoa, someone's in a crappy mood."

I shake my head quickly, giving me a little head rush. "It's nothing guys, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to raise my voice." I add, glancing in Santana's direction, "I'm sorry for worrying you."

Santana hugs me quickly. "It's okay babygirl, it's okay. And I'm sorry for kind of freaking you out with my attitude towards you earlier. That's usually how I am; I'm just really protective of my loved ones; especially to my family. And even though you are my half-sister, you're still my family Rach. I'm just looking out for you and I'm just trying to be the big sister you never had."

I just said, "I love you, San."

"I love you too, Rach." Santana smiles at me as she says that and I smile back. Brittany gives us a pout, "Hey, what about me?"

Santana and I chuckle at that and then, "We love you too, Britt."

* * *

During lunch, I finally told them that I quit the Cheerios.

"So I'm now Head Cheerio?" Santana asks and I nod. "But why?"

"I just realized that cheerleading isn't really for me. I'm meant to be a star on Broadway someday and I've always known that about myself. I guess I only joined the Cheerios because…"

"We understand, Rach. No need to elaborate," Santana and Brittany said.

"We support you in everything you do and in everything you want to be. We just want the best for you and if being on stage is going to fulfill just that, then so be it." Santana says.

Brittany said in reply, "Yeah, what she said."

I smiled, thanked them for their support, and then Santana starts scrutinizing me up and down again. Uh-oh. Damn Santana's Psychic Mexican third eye. No wonder she's such a genius. A smartass genius.

"Wait a minute. How come we've been talking all this time and I've just now realized what you have on, Rachel? What are _you_ wearing? A Canucks t-shirt? An oversized Canucks t-shirt… what is that?"

Oh shit. I stayed silent for a moment and then…

"It's a hockey team," Brittany points out.

How come _she_, of all people, knew that?

I quickly thought of something. "I borrowed it from Finn since I was out of clothes. You know, since I didn't really plan on sleeping over so yeah, he let me borrow one of his t-shirts."

Santana was about to reply, but the bell rang signaling us for glee. "Oh look that's the bell, let's go ladies." I said, stood up, grabbing my stuff in one swift motion and just walked out of the cafeteria, walking to the choir room as quickly as I could.

* * *

**Santana's POV**

Well that was certainly weird. As I linked my pinkies with Britt and started our walk to the choir room, I can't help but think that there's something going on with Rachel and Finn. Something way beyond Rachel sleeping over at his house and I can't really wrap my head around it right now, but… how she acted in the caf, was really surprising. She was acting all weird and guarded and everything. I don't know what's really happening right now, but I am gonna get to the bottom of it. That's just how I roll. Sure, I admit that I'm a bitch, but I keep it real and I'm kind of hilarious if given the chance.

So Rachel Berry, get ready and watch your back coz I, Santana Lopez, am gonna get to the bottom of this.

* * *

**A/N: Smartass Santana is smart! Uh-oh, do you guys think she has an inkling of what's going on with Rachel and Finn? Rachel should know that she should never doubt Santana's psychic Mexican third eye, because it is NEVER wrong.**

**Tell me what you guys think of this chapter! :) -Rein**


	21. Finn Saves the Day

**Nineteen**

**Rachel's POV**

Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. I am screwed. Santana knows something's up. I entered the choir room, my heart beating like crazy and I just want Finn here with me. I sit down on my usual seat, on the front, willing my heart to stop beating wildly, but it won't stop.

Mercedes turned to me and said, "Girl, you okay? You're looking a little pale."

I nodded and assured her, "I'm fine, Mercedes. Thanks for the concern. It's nothing. I'm just stressed."

She nods, unsure of what I said and whispers something to Tina that I couldn't really comprehend. And then Tina turns to me and says, "Rachel, maybe you should see the nurse or something; you're looking really pale."

"It's not—" I stopped myself, clamped a hand on my mouth and I threw up my lunch on the nearby trashcan in the corner. Santana and Brittany chose that moment to walk into the room and Santana rushed over to me, holding my hair. "Whoa Rach, you okay?"

When I was done, I nodded and wiped my mouth on Finn's shirt sleeve. Great, just damn great. "I'm fine, San. It's just something I ate. The pasta I ate made my stomach become unsettled, I guess."

Santana nodded and reached her hand out to take me back to my seat, but I refused, saying I needed to go to the bathroom quickly and sort myself out. I didn't wait for anyone's reply; I just went straight to the ladies' room.

I turned to the mirror and said to myself, "It's nothing Rachel, you're just nervous. It's just nerves, you're just nervous because of Santana almost knowing that something is up. It's just that. Okay? You're fine. You're fine." I then turn on the tap and splashed cold water on my face; now I feel ten times better. I smiled at my reflection in the mirror, left the ladies' room, got a bottle of cold water on the vending machine, drank some water, and finally I started walking back to the choir room.

I walk in to see Finn already in his seat beside mine and he stood up once he saw me, giving me a tight hug. "I was so worried. Santana called me saying your stomach felt unsettled and that you threw up. You okay?"

I hugged him back, tight, and I assured him, "I'm all better now, now that you're here."

He rubbed my back, giving me this soothing and calming sensation. I closed my eyes and allowed myself to enjoy this simple gesture. Finn pulls away from the hug a few moments later and he gives me a kiss. I held his hand and led him back down to our seats. Finn puts his arms all around my shoulders and I smile.

* * *

As the day progresses, the more I get all hot and bothered since the whole time we were listening to Mr. Schue drone on and on about this week's assignment, which was duets, Finn's hand was on my thigh. On my thigh. Yep. I released a small moan, thankful that no one's looking my way. Finn was smirking at me and he kept teasing me.

But I managed to control myself.

* * *

I however, couldn't control myself when we started performing our song.

So there we were, singing "You're The One that I Want"; me singing Sandy's parts and him Danny's, and us singing the chorus together beautifully, our voices harmonizing perfectly. But when we got to the second chorus, I just stopped singing and just kissed him hard. He kissed me back deeply and didn't even seem surprised by my actions because I know that this is what he wanted too.

We kept kissing each other passionately and just like at the prom, the world around us melted away.

* * *

After our little moment in glee, Finn ushered me safely inside his limo. "Tell me, is there anything I need to be sorry for?"

I shook my head. "No." I then add, "Well yeah, there is. You have to say sorry for getting me all hot and bothered in the choir room earlier. And also for getting me to moan," I pouted and he laughed.

"Oh yeah, that, that was just embarrassing. I'm sorry Rach, I just can't control myself. I really missed you today."

"Apology accepted and yes, I missed you too."

His arms found my waist again. "Do you have to go home now?"

"I meant what I said on my note; I'll see you later, baby. So no, I'm not going home yet."

He asks, coyly, "What do you want to do then?"

"I think you know what I want to do." I'm pretty sure he can hear the smirk in my voice.

He nodded and ordered his driver to drive us to the condo and put the tinted Plexiglass partition up so that we could have some privacy. And once it was up, Finn and I start doing things to each other, the both of us could barely control ourselves.

I really can't wait till we get to the condo.

* * *

The moment we got there, he has me pinned on the door and starts kissing me roughly and hungrily. I then suggested that I need a shower and told him if he wants to come with. We had a little quickie in the shower.

"You do know this is your shirt, right?" I say, once we were done showering. He nods.

"I'm not giving it back to you." I say.

"I don't want it back." He says and kisses me again.

I tousled up his hair and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I can't stay today. I gotta get home before Mom or Santana has a fit."

He gives me a playful pout and flashes me his puppy dog eyes. I laughed. "I can't stay Finny, I wish I could, but I can't. I'm already in enough trouble as it is."

Finn understood and hugs me, quickly. "I love you, Rach."

"I love you too, Finn." I said back. And then he says something that totally surprised me.

"Would you wanna maybe get dinner with me tomorrow?"

I look at him, totally interested. "Like… like on a date?"

He nodded. "Being cooped up here all day and night long doesn't really count as a date and plus, we haven't even had our first official date. So yeah, it's a date. Again, would you want to maybe catch a movie and get dinner with me tomorrow?"

I smiled at him. "Sold; I'll be here at six or you could just come pick me up, whatever you want."

He kisses me at that moment, seemingly happy with my decision. "I'll come and pick you up. 7:30 good?"

"7:30's just fine." I kissed him one last time before he hailed me a cab so that I could go home.

* * *

I can't wait for our first official date tomorrow night.

* * *

**A/N: Next chapter: Finchel's first official date! What do you guys think will happen? And what do you guys think of this chapter? :) -Rein**


	22. Date Gone Wrong, Date Gone Right

**A/N: Thank you guys for all the nice feedback this story has been receiving; whether on here or on Twitter—I appreciate all your comments. It means so much to me, so thank you guys for all the support! :) –Rein**

**This goes out to my sis on Twitter, _TheNewYorker_ :)**

* * *

**Twenty**

**Rachel's POV**

"So… what are you and Finn doing tonight?" Santana wanted to know at school the next day. I rolled my eyes. I hate that she sticks her nose up in everyone's business; can't she learn to take a hint? It's really annoying, possibly even more annoying for me and that's saying something.

I huffed. "Santana, can you please just drop it? I'm not in the mood."

But Santana, being Santana, didn't stop and continued pestering me.

"Not unless you tell me what you guys are doing tonight."

"No."

"Tell me and I'll stop, I promise."

I put my hand on my hip, glared at her, because truthfully, I am quite annoyed with her and her antics. Ever since Finn and I became a couple, she's been all up in my grill about everything regarding our relationship.

Since there's really no way out of this, I huffed once more before finally answering her. "We're going on a date, get dinner and catch a movie. Happy now?"

I should've known better than to answer her.

Santana grinned, "Oh my god that is so awesome! Which reminds me: Brittany and I are going on a date too, why don't we just turn it into a double date?"

If San thinks that this is fun and she was enjoying every minute of it, well, this certainly isn't fun for me anymore. "Did you not hear me? I just said Finn and I are going on a date, which absolutely means that you guys can't come."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please Rach?"

"Don't Rach me. Finn's the only one who is allowed to call me that, and did you not hear me again? I said no."

"Please Rachiekins?"

"Don't do that to me! Santana, god, I can't believe you! Take a hint, will you? Stop acting like an annoying five year-old and leave me and Finn alone, and it's still a no!"

"Rachel please, I promise you, we're not going to bother you in any way…"

I scoffed, "Like what you are doing right now? Yep, it's still a no."

Santana says, her voice sounding desperate now, "Rachel please, I promise you, we're not going to be a bother and the both of you are really gonna have a good time. Please, please, please say yes."

I decided to get lost in my thoughts for a moment, before sighing. "Fine; just because I can't resist that annoyingly cute pout and those puppy-dog eyes of yours, fine, you guys can come. But it better be good, Santana. Don't make me regret my decision. Quit smiling like an idiot and just say thank you, will you?"

She hugs me instead and thanks me over and over again. I rolled my eyes and just hugged her back. When she finally released me, she said, "I promise you, it's going to be a good time Rach, you're not gonna regret it."

"It better be— you've already imposed enough." I said matter of factly. And she chooses that time to chuckle. "God San, sometimes you are such an annoying pain in my ass."

Santana giggles and leans down, whispering in my ear, "But… you know you love me, right?"

I rolled my eyes again. "You really need to quit watching Gossip Girl." I hit her arm playfully.

Then she batted her eyelashes at me. "You know you love me, right?" Santana then giggled at her own joke or whatever and I rolled my eyes again.

"Yeah, yeah, anything to get you to stop talking and harassing me."

"I was not harassing you!"

"You totally were." I said, smirking, and she was about to reply, but I beat her to it. "Now get out of here before I change my mind."

"Aye aye mam!" Santana says and giggles again, before winking at me, then finally getting out of the ladies' room.

Sigh. This should be a blast. Oh fuck. How am I going to explain this to Finn?

* * *

"What? What do you mean rain check? You don't wanna go on a date with me?" Finn said to me. We were talking in a corner in the choir room before glee began. Well, okay, I was sitting on his lap and he keeps an arm around me to keep me steady. But you get the picture.

"I want to, I want to go on a date with you so badly, but those two—" I nodded my head in Brittany and Santana's direction to make my point across, "—no, Santana had this idea that we should turn this into a double date instead and I can't refuse Santana. I can never refuse her, no matter what I do."

Finn sighed. "Fine— they can go with. But you missy, you better make it up to me." He said and traced a finger on my thigh, then going further down my leg and I can't help but release a moan again.

"I'm gonna m-make it up to y-you, I-I promise." I stuttered out. Then I added, "Can you quit with the teasing? I've had enough of that with Santana and I can't really um… function well when you're teasing me like that."

Finn just nodded and held my left cheek in his right hand, cupping it gently, his left playing with my hair before he finally closed the gap between us and he captured my lips in his own. I tensed a little in surprise, but quickly relaxed once his tongue danced with my own. Our tongues fought for dominance.

I grabbed a fistful of his hair and he in turn, squeezed my ass which made me squeal in shock, but our heated kissing just intensified. I want to order him to stop, because we were at school, my school to be more specific, and I could possibly get expelled for doing this at school premises, but my mind and my heart didn't have the nerve to tell him to stop.

So I didn't.

Finn nipped at my bottom lip, and then leaned down a little making our swollen lips disconnect for a moment; he nipped at my neck and then finally, reconnected his lips with mine. I do the same to him and I can feel his pants getting tight and I smirked to myself. I straddled his lap and kept kissing him roughly and heatedly.

* * *

We made out right then and there, much to the delight, disgust, and shock of my fellow glee clubbers. "Get it, Hudson! Get it!" I heard Mike and the other guys saying and Santana countering with, "Could you two please control yourselves? We're in school and we're not in a fucking sex club." and that was when I lost balance from sitting on Finn's lap (which was due to my shock from Santana's words), and landed face first on the floor.

"Ow," I squeaked and Finn offered me his big large hand to help me up.

"You okay?" He asks and I nodded. "My face hurts a little though, and my lips kind of hurt too."

"That's what sucking faces and playing tonsil tennis does to you," Santana teases and I glare at her. She shrugs, "What? I'm keepin' it real."

"Let me get you some ice or cold water for your face, be right back." Finn offers and leaves quickly.

Tina chose that moment to walk in the classroom, breaking the awkward moment. "Guys, Mr. Schue just texted me and said he won't be in today coz he's down with the flu."

Is it just me or did her stutter completely disappear? Or maybe she really was faking it… Okay, I was right, she was faking it. Ha. For once I am right and Santana's wrong. Hahaha.

* * *

Most of the glee members erupted into cheers and I just stood there, not knowing what to do.

"So Rachel, what do you want to do today?" Mike asked.

"I don't know— what do you guys want to do?" I said in reply.

Finn walked in that moment, carrying a bottle of really cold water which he quickly handed over to me and instructed me to place and rub carefully on my face. I smiled. He was such a caring boyfriend and a real gentleman; I don't know what I did to deserve him. I quickly thanked him and did as I was told.

"Jam session!" Artie suggested and everyone agreed.

* * *

We had so much fun that day, all of us, Finn included. All Mr. Schue wanted was for us New Directioners to sing Journey songs and classics and it's really getting old and quite boring, sorry Mr. S. This was the first jam session we had in a long while and I'm glad we had a blast.

But now there's the date, I mean, double date to think of. Sigh. What Santana planned for us better be good because I don't know if I can handle any more of her annoying antics, oh wait… yeah, I can't handle anymore of her annoying antics.

* * *

**Santana's POV**

I caught up with Finn and Rachel in the hallway after our fun jam session in glee.

"Finn, hey. Can I have a word with you?" I told him and gave him a glance, not even acknowledging Rachel's presence. Rachel gives me an inquisitive look and I added, "Alone? Finn can I have a word with you, in private?"

I heard Finn telling his girlfriend that he'll catch up with her later and Rachel nodded, but before she could even leave, she gave us a warning, well mostly directed to me, "Fine, but no funny business." And then she left us alone.

"What do you want, Santana? You've already ruined mine and Rachel's date night and whatever you're gonna tell me better be good." Finn said; his tone annoyed.

I rolled my eyes. "Okay Frankenteen, calm down. I'm the one who got you guys into this mess and I'm the one who's gonna get you guys out. I'm here because I have a proposition for you."

"And what may that be?" Finn said, now sounding bored.

I guide him down to one of the benches just nearby the lockers and whispered my plan to him. I saw him contemplating it for a minute but when he finally got it, he nodded in agreement, giving me his keys. "Here are my spare keys to the condo, don't mess it up. Just go and do what you gotta do."

I take his keys and quickly thank him. I smirked to myself and made my way to my own car in the student parking lot, thinking: Rachel won't know what hit her.

* * *

**Rachel's POV**

I'm a little curious as to what Santana wanted with Finn, but I quickly put it out of my mind as I started getting ready. No one's home, thank goodness. Marley was at a sleepover, Puck was at one of his basketball friends, and Mom was working until midnight tonight. Perfect.

It was just when I finished putting on my best LBD and pink stilettos when my phone rang. It was Finn, judging from the caller ID.

"Hey Finn, where are you?"

"_I'm just coming to pick you up, I'm almost there."_ He says on the other end.

"Good. So what did Santana want with you earlier?" I can't help myself.

"_Well I was going to tell you that exactly, but you were already gone."_

"Yeah sorry, I needed to get ready for tonight even though it wasn't exactly how we planned it to be."

"_Yeah. Anyways, Santana has some plan up her sleeve and wants to take us to dinner at Breadstix. And don't worry; she booked the four of us a secluded room to avoid paps and all."_

"Oh… so that's it? That's what she wanted?" I said, coz I was honestly expecting something else knowing Santana and all.

"_Yup, that's all. What are you thinking, Rach?"_

"Nothing. I just thought… I just thought she wanted something else. You know…" I said, trailing off, unsure of how to continue. Finn must've sensed the uncertainty in my voice and understood what I was referring to as he replied, _"Rachel, you know I'm only like that with you. I'm not like that with any other girls, just you. I'm only intimate with you and only you."_

I can't believe he just said the 'I' word.

"Okay, I believe you. And I'm really excited to see you."

"_I am too. What are you wearing?"_

"You'll see." I'm pretty sure he could hear the smirk in my voice.

"_I can't wait. I can't wait to take it off of you."_ He says, teasing me. I rolled my eyes. Now he was getting me all hot and bothered again.

"Don't tease, baby. Just come and get here, will ya?"

Before he could even reply, I heard a car honking downstairs which must be him.

I hang up the phone and went down, quickly locking up the house and then I saw him in the driver's seat of his car, which was a midnight blue Porsche.

"Wow, where's the limo?" I teased him once I got inside and we both chuckled.

"In the condo. I wanted to take you out for a ride in my own car for a change." Finn said and gave me a kiss. "By the way, you look really beautiful tonight."

"Hmm, thanks mister, you don't look so bad yourself," I said back, with a giggle and with that we were off to our destination.

* * *

We went through the back door of Breadstix (don't ask how I knew that; ask San instead) and our waiter ushered us safely inside the secluded room Santana booked for the four of us.

"Finally, the lovebirds have arrived." Santana says, her usual sarcasm dripping in her voice and I giggled.

"So what's the menu for tonight?" I asked the group.

"What's the menu for tonight? You," Finn said and Brittany and Santana erupted into fits of laughter and I blushed beet red with embarrassment.

I slapped his arm, hard, because I'm getting annoyed again. Tonight there isn't any more room for jokes; I've had enough of them.

"Seriously, guys, what's the menu?"

The four of us ended up eating pastas, mine of course with the meat substitute, Santana and Finn ordered Bolognese, and Brittany ordered lasagna. Then we also ordered red wine, beer, and champagne, well I wanted champagne, Finn wanted non-alcoholic beer, so the two girls ended up with the wine.

"I propose a toast. To new relationships—" I cut Santana off.

"Guys, I don't know if I should be drinking…" I say, making them all look at me in shock, especially Finn and Santana.

"What? What are you talking about? You're not pregnant, right? Or are _you_?" Santana said, and honestly right now, I don't know if she's teasing or being serious. The way Santana said it wasn't in a teasing way, she said it in a really serious way and that scared me.

I don't really drink, okay? Of course I'm not pregnant.

"What? No, of course not! I'm just saying… nothing, never mind."

"Why are you freaking out then?" Brittany asks.

"What? No, no, I'm not freaking out!"

Finn noticed my uneasiness. "Rach, you okay?"

"I'm fine Finn, let's just go on with the toasting." I assured them, but I could tell my sister was unconvinced. Thankfully, she let it go.

"So again, I propose a toast. To new relationships and to love; cheers!" Santana says and we all clink our glasses with each other's then quickly downing our drinks.

* * *

The night was turning out quite well, even better than I expected it to be. I'm actually having fun at this double date. Sure, San and Britt may have hijacked it, but it turned out to be really fun.

I look at Finn and decided to get lost in my thoughts about him.

I think I'm seeing Finn from a different light. Here, in this room with us, I can only see a normal Finn Hudson here with us, not Hollywood celebrity Finn Hudson. Would a celebrity joke around with their fellow celebrities? I think not. Would they share stories about anything under the sun with their fellow celebs? Maybe... but still, I think celebs are just too damn serious in their craft and can sometimes be a diva, but I'm not seeing that diva side of Finn. I'm not…

* * *

"Oh okay, it's 9pm, Britts and I gots to go." Santana says, bringing me back to reality.

"What? It's not even that late yet wait—" I squint my eyes a little, giving them all inquisitive looks. "—you guys are up to something." I pointed out.

Brittany says, "What? That's ridiculous, why would we be up to something?" That's strange; that's the first time I heard her say something tonight… or maybe I just wasn't paying attention.

Finn agreed with her. Santana tossed him something and he caught the item quickly, whatever it was. I'm really confused now; what are they planning?

"Guys, if you're planning something let me in on it, because I want in too." I said and flashed them a pout.

Santana and Brittany stand up from their seats and Brittany waves goodbye at me.

Santana whispers in my ear, "Be safe, mi estrella." And then she leaves, making me hella confused.

I look to Finn, shooting him a questioning glance and he finally gives it up. "Okay, okay, Santana planned this and I'm not supposed to say anything. I'll just show you."

He tied a blindfold over my eyes and led me out the room and out of Breadstix and into his car. I started freaking out, because I couldn't see anything. "Finn, what the hell is this? What's happening? Are you trying to freak me out by kidnapping me? Because it's working."

But all he said was, "You'll know when we get there. I'm sure you'll like it."

I crossed my arms over my chest and kept my lips sealed. There's something he isn't telling me, him being secretive and weird and all….

* * *

He drove us to his condo, guided me out his car, unlocked the doors to his condo, and finally guided me up the stairs. I hadn't said a word the whole drive over and I'm certainly not gonna say anything now.

He ushered me to his bedroom and finally freed me of the blindfold and I couldn't believe what I saw. Basically the whole room was full of petals, even his bed, and there was a gold star-shaped looking box on top of it, one miniature and one large.

I finally found my voice. "Finn, what is all this?"

"It's my surprise for you. Well, technically Santana arranged it all to make it up for imposing and everything but yeah… it's my surprise for you."

I can't believe it; I can't believe it at all. Nothing seemed real to me.

I then felt his breath on my skin. "You don't know how badly I wanted to kiss you ever since earlier tonight."

"I love you so much, Finn. Just quit talking and take me now, will you?" I ordered and he nodded.

I'm pretty sure you know what happened next.

* * *

These past few nights, Finn and I were just having sex, but now, now we made love for the first time. It was pleasurable, but also so painful, but it didn't matter as long as he's here with me.

Nothing else matters. Nothing else mattered.

Tonight turned out to be another one of the most amazing nights of my life. And I would cherish it forever.

* * *

Little did I know my life was about to change in a really huge way.

* * *

**A/N: Hope you guys like this chapter! :)**

**I have two questions for you guys:**

**What do you guys think were in the gold star-shaped boxes?**

**AND**

**What do you guys think Rachel meant by that last line?**

**Please tell me what you think. Review please :D -Rein**


	23. Change

**This chapter goes out to my sis Lara ( _TheNewYorker_ on twitter) and my friend Zoe (Heaven_Coookie on twitter). Love you guys! :)**

* * *

**Twenty-One**

I've been dreading this week since like, the prom— the week that Finn would be going back to LA. Why can't he just stay here with me? Oh yeah, because he has a job to get back to. But still, I wish he'd just stay.

* * *

Monday, he spent the whole day with my family, even bonding with Puck and Marley, and him getting Mom's stamp of approval.  
Puck and Finn even became good bros (despite their age difference, they actually have the same interests in sports, movies, music, and even hobbies) and Puck promised him that he would be there on Finn's next movie or TV premiere party.  
Mom told me that Finn's a good guy, a great guy, even, and that he's a keeper. Marley told me that she wished for the love like the love Finn and I have. But we told her that she was too young for that and that her time will come.

* * *

Tuesday, he brought me a bouquet of roses because I was feeling under the weather and he even made some vegetable & chicken soup, especially for me. It was such a sweet gesture and he truly was a caring boyfriend.

* * *

Wednesday, I was still feeling a little bit under the weather but I managed to go with him on our first official date, just the two of us and no hijacks and whatnot.  
He took me out on this romantic candlelit dinner in a secret place in his apartment/condo that he never told me about or never showed me before. It was a little bungalow and according to him, it was his sanctuary for when he just needed some alone time.  
We ended up stargazing and he gave me a special present: a star that he named Finn Hudson. Because according to him, there's already a star named Rachel Berry and that she shines bright here on earth.  
He told me that if ever I was lonely, I could just look up at the night sky, find the star, and just know that he's looking down on me. It was the sweetest thing anyone's ever done for me and I'm at a loss for words. I didn't think it'd be possible for me to love him even more than I love him now, during this beautiful moment.

* * *

Thursday, was something I didn't expect. As I walked into the choir room, my fellow glee members threw me bouquets and bouquets of roses, and even Mr. Schue. I was about to ask what was going on, when Finn walked into the room, sat me down on a stool and he started singing to me.

_Finn: Each time the wind blows  
I hear your voice so  
I call your name_

_Whispers at morning  
our love is dawning  
Heaven's glad you came_

_You know how I feel  
this thing can't go wrong  
I'm so proud to say I love you_

_Your love's got me high  
I long to get by  
this time is forever love is the answer_

I can't help myself, so I joined in.

**Me: I hear your voice now  
you are my choice now  
the love you bring**

**Heaven's in my heart  
at your call I hear harps  
and angels sing**

**You know how I feel  
this thing can't go wrong  
I can't live my life without you**

_Finn: I just can't hold on  
_**Me: I feel we belong  
**_Finn: my life ain't worth livin'  
if I can't be with you_

We held hands for a while, and then we started singing directly to each other.

_**Both: I just can't stop loving you  
I just can't stop loving you  
And if I stop  
Then tell me just what will I do  
I just can't stop loving you**_

_At night when the stars shine  
I'm praying you are fine  
a love so true_

**Hmmm when morning awakes me  
will you come and take me?  
I'll wait for you**

_You know how I feel  
I won't stop a tear  
I hear your voice saying I do_ **(I do)**

**This thing can't go wrong  
**_this feeling's so strong  
_**well; my life ain't worth livin'  
**_**if I can't be with you!**_

_**I just can't stop loving you**_ **(oh no)  
**_**I just can't stop loving you**_ **(loving you)**_**  
**__And if I stop_** (ooh)  
**_Then tell me just what will I do_ **(do)  
**_**I just can't stop loving you**_

**We can change all the world tomorrow  
**_we can sing songs of yesterday  
_**I can say hey farewell to sorrow  
**_this is my life and I  
_**  
**_**I want to see you for always**_

_**I just can't stop loving you**_ **(oh baby no!)  
**_**I just can't stop loving you**_ **(hell can't stop!)  
**_And if I stop__** (no!)**_**  
**_Then tell me just what will I do_ **(what will I do?)**

**I just can't stop loving you **_(heeheehee, oh little girl!)  
__**I just can't stop loving you**_ _(no I do!)  
__**And if I stop then tell me just what will I do  
I just can't stop loving you**_

We finished singing and I got tears in my eyes. I can see his getting watery as well. Everyone applauded us. We shared a quick kiss and an embrace then he guided me back in my seat. He then grabbed something from his jeans pocket; it was the gold star-shaped box I've seen last week. He handed it to me and told me to open it.

I opened it and saw a promise ring with 'Finchel Forever' engraved in it and a necklace with a gold star pendant that has 'Rachel' written on it. I gave him a teary smile and said, "Thank you Finn, I love you so much." I hugged him tightly, afraid to let go. But eventually I had to.

"I love you too, Rachel." He kisses me and the tears just stream down my face. After that, I put the ring on my left ring finger and made him put the necklace on me. "Perfect. Thank you, my man." I said and he smiled. "You're welcome my lady."

Then he grabs the other gold star-shaped box, the large one this time, from his backpack. He hands it over and I open it. It turned out to be a photo collage, random photos of me, him, and the both of us together. "You… you made this?"

"I can't take all the credit, babe. Santana and Brittany helped me out." He confesses and I stand up, made my way over to said girls and gave them a huge hug.

"Thank you so much, San and Britt, just thank you. You're the bestest friends a girl could ever have." I whispered to them and they said it was a pleasure and that they love me so much.

I feel so loved and special; I don't know what I did to deserve having them all in my life.

* * *

Before I knew it, it was Friday aka Finn's last full day in Lima. We spent the whole day cooped up in his condo. "Do you really have to go?" I said, wistfully, as I watched him packing up his stuff.  
"Yes and I'm sorry baby." He says and gives me a peck.

"I want you to stay."  
"I want to stay too, but they need me there."  
"Finn, I need you and I know you need me too."

I guess you could say I was having a major Finn separation anxiety.

"God, this is so hard." He says, packing the last of his stuff in his last suitcase. Then he goes and joins me on the bed, cuddling me. "Here's what I want you to know: I'm coming back, okay? This is not the end for us, we're just going to be separated for a little while but we're gonna be okay. I'll talk to you every day that I can on Skype, Twitter, FaceTime, and even Facebook.

"We're gonna be okay Rachel, I promise you. Remember what you said to me the night of the prom? What was that again? Oh yeah that— that even though it's a long-distance relationship we're gonna make it work? Well, we'll make it work, I know that. I know us.

"And I know a few weeks aren't enough, but I know we're gonna spend a lifetime loving each other because I mean it, I will come back for you because I just realized this these past few weeks ago; my home isn't someplace, not LA, or anywhere in the world, it's you and only you. I have a reason to come back here and that's you. You're my home Rach, and I love you so much."

I didn't realize I was sobbing so much until he wiped my tears away with his finger. I sniffled and just hugged him closer to me. "I'm going to miss you a lot and I love you so much, Finn."

He rubs my back in an attempt to soothe me, but it wasn't soothing me or comforting me or anything. "I know baby, I know, ssshhh, stop crying, I hate seeing you cry, ssshh stop crying baby."

We made love on his last night and it just made it harder for him to leave. But I knew in the morning he'll be gone. And I was right. I woke up that bittersweet Saturday morning to find him gone. I cried a little, and then when I calmed down, I found that Finn left me the spare keys to the condo, accompanied by a note saying:

_Rachel,_

_When you get this note, I'm probably on the plane already or back in my hometown but I just want you to know… that I just can't stop loving you. And I also wanna say that my home is your home, too. You can go to our secret place whenever you feel lonely or you can just look up at the sky and know that I will be looking down on you. I love you, Rach. This isn't a goodbye because I'll never say goodbye to you, there's only till we meet and see each other again. I love you so much, Rachel.  
-Finn_

I can't wait till the day we meet again.

* * *

a month later… (March)

"So, how's Finn?" Santana asked me as I was opening the door to Finn's condo, er, mine and Finn's condo. I opened it after a few minutes of struggling and ushered them in. We were going to spend a majority of our spring break here.  
"He's great, San. He's doing really great. He's working on a new project; we've been talking almost every single day, and yeah everything's great." I said and gave her a fake smile, which I'd been doing a lot lately.

"Well if everything's great, then why aren't you?" Brittany says. Sometimes I think she's even smarter than she lets on.  
"What? What do you mean? I am great, Britt." I assured her and Santana too, who was looking at me with a perplexed look in her eyes.

"Don't look at me like that, guys. Trust me, I am fine." They kept flashing me looks of sympathy. "Guys, stop looking at me like that."

"We know you're lonely Rachie, but you're not alone." Brittany says, but I wasn't listening to her since I felt this nauseating feeling overcome me, but I didn't give much thought to it. It's nothing; it's just nerves.  
'Yeah, keep telling yourself that Rachel.' My conscience said and I ignored it.

"Yeah and you know we'll be here for you, for whatever you need. We're not going anywhere… Sis, are you okay? You look really pale and you look like you're ready to hurl or some…" Santana said, cutting herself off once I sprinted to the nearest bathroom and just puked my guts out in the toilet. The girls were beside me in an instant, Santana holding my hair and Brittany rubbing my back, her back rubs giving me a calming sensation.

The puking thing has happened before, but I never thought it would be this bad.

"Oh Rach, we hate seeing you like this. We hate seeing you sick with the stomach bug," Santana said and I continued chucking up.  
"Our movie marathon could wait. We're gonna take care of you, Rachel." Brittany said and I wiped my mouth on my shirt and gave them a smile. I flushed the toilet after chucking up.

They gave me a hug, left the bathroom so that I could sort myself out. I was brushing my teeth when I felt the nauseating feeling again, but it quickly passed so it's all good. When I was done, I sat down on the toilet seat and just thought about a lot of stuff. Mainly about what's happening to me. I remember when Finn and I made love for the first time (I was a little drunk because of the champagne and he was sober), we used protection, I am certain of that, and plus I was on the pill that time. But I remembered that on his last night in Lima when we made love, I slept with him… and I wasn't on the pill.

Not to mention the fact that I gained a couple pounds and am overly emotional since Finn left…

Oh my God. Oh my fucking God.

How could I be so stupid? I am such an idiot. I got myself into this mess. With the help of Finn, of course. Since it takes two to tango…

I wasn't thinking straight. Fuck my life; I am screwed. My dreams of being in Broadway are screwed.

I was on the bathroom floor now as the harsh reality or truth whatever you wanna call it came crashing down on me like a ton of bricks were thrown on me. This isn't the stomach bug anymore. This is… I am… I can't even say the word coz it would make it all feel real. I started sobbing to myself.

"Rachel?" San and Britt reappeared in the bathroom, both flashing each other worried looks as they saw me sobbing my heart out on the floor.

"Rachie, what's wrong? Are you okay? You look really pale." Brittany.

"Sis, talk to me. Please, tell me what's going on." Santana.

"I'm such an idiot. I'm such an idiot." I told them, whilst still crying.

"What are you talking about? Rachel, please tell us what's wrong, coz you're freaking us out."

I took a deep breath and told them my deepest, darkest, and hugest secret. "I think I'm pregnant." I managed to tell them what was going on before I started feeling woozy and lightheaded.

The last thing I heard was, "You think you're pregnant? Rachel? Rachel? RACHEL!" before I passed out on the cold, tiled bathroom floor and everything went black.

* * *

**A/N: Cliffhanger! Were you guys expecting that? :O :O :O So, what do you guys think will happen to Rachel? Is she pregnant or not pregnant?—that is the question. Tell me what you guys think; it makes my day and inspires me to write more chapters :) –Rein**


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